Abstract:Nutrient accumulation and distribution in 33-year-old Fokienia hodginsii and Cunninghamia lanceolata plantation communities were determined during 1999 to 2000 in Sanming, Fujian, China. The results showed that the biomass in tree layer of F. hodginsii and the C. lanceolata communities were 228.8 t hm-2 and 235.1 t hm-2, respectively, and total accumulation of nutrient elements (N, P, K, Ca, and Mg) being 1283 kg hm-2 and 1060 kg hm-2, respectively. The accumulation of nutrient elements in tree layer or in the whole community for both plantations were in the order of K>N>Ca>Mg>P. The total accumulation of the 5 nutrient elements in different parts of trees was in the order of stem wood>branch>root>stem bark>leaf>dead branch for F. hodginsii plantation, and stem wood>root>stem bark>leaf>branch>dead branch for C. lanceolata plantation. The nutrient utilization efficiency of F. hodginsii was lower than that of C. lanceolata. Although over 94% of the nutrient elements in both ecosystems were stored in the soil, available nutrient elements in the soil which could be easily utilized by the plants were rather low, particularly, the reserve of available P in the soil was lower than that in the plants. The amount of annual retention of all the 5 elements in tree layer of the F. hodginsii and the C. lanceolata communities were 30.75 kg hm-2 and 16.53 kg hm-2, respectively.