Effects of nutrient addition on leaf chemistry and metabolism of three bog shrubs growing in the Mer Bleue bog, a Canadian boreal peatland

These data contain biochemical parameters as measured in foliage of three ericaceous shrubs as part of a long-term fertilization experiment at Mer Bleue bog in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Velvetleaf blueberry, Bog Labrador tea and Leatherleaf were experimentally treated with Nitrogen (N) and Nitrogen + Phosphorus + Potassium (N+P+K) at levels 5 and 20 times greater than the ambient growing season wet Nitrogen deposition (0.8 grams of Nitrogen per square meter per year [g N m⁻² yr⁻¹]). There were a total of 5 treatments (control, 5N, 5NPK, 20N, 20NPK); each treatment had three replicate plots 3 × 3 m in size. Nitrogen as Ammonium Nitrate (NH4NO3) and Nitrogen + Phosphorus + Potassium as Ammonium Nitrate + Potassium Phosphate (NH4NO3 + KH2PO4) was dissolved in distilled water and applied in soluble form as an application of 2 millimeters at 3-week intervals from early May to late August. Control plots were treated with distilled water. Three treatment applications began in 2000, the 20N treatment was added in 2005. Foliar sampling took place in 2008, which was eight and three years after initiation, respectively. Data includes free polyamines, free amino acids, soluble ions, chlorophyll and soluble proteins that were analyzed using an HPLC, ICP, and spectrophotometer.This was a collaborative study to examine how different plant attributes (anatomy, physiology and photosynthesis) responded to increased Nitrogen, Phosphorous and Potassium concentrations. The increased nutrient input and resulting plant response data could be used in modeling efforts to predict potential impacts on the structure and function of peatlands.Original metadata date was 06/26/2020. On 07/24/2020 metadata were updated to include additional keywords.