Table 6. Average nutrient content of sand from various locations on Padre Island. 



Area 



pH 



Organic matter 



N0 3 



p 2 o 5 



K 2 



CaO 



Soluble salts 



Na 







(percent) 







(pounds per acre 







Suggested level for 



8.3 







80 



80 



500 







2,000 







agricultural lands 



















Nursery 



7.4 



0.7 





30 



155 



700 





42 



Twin Batteries 



8.6 



0.1 



21 



15 



188 



4,739 



3,840 



1,995 



South Padre Pass 



8.9 



0.0 



24 



18 



480 



14,000 



4,420 



4,140 



South Padre sea oats 



9.2 



0.0 



10 



25 



580 



15,000+ 



2,219 



5,000+ 



Mustang foredune 



8.0 



0.0 





17 



48 



2,576 



52 



60 



Mustang interdune 



7.3 



0.8 



2 



26 



84 



1,344 



52 



60 



Mustang hind dune 



6.6 



1.1 



5 



24 



72 



1,344 



104 



60 



North Padre foredune 



8.5 



0.1- 



2 



18 



48 



6,300 



52 



60 



North Padre interdune 



7.8 



0.5 



2 



12 



84 



1,036 



52 



40 



North Padre hind dune 



7.4 



0.1 





11 



60 



376 



52 



60 



PAIS foredune 



8.1 



0.1 



20 



15 



96 



3,500 



1,716 



640 



PAIS interdune 



7.8 



0.6 





19 



96 



1,036 



52 



80 



PAIS hind dune 



7.5 



0.2 





13 



60 



616 



52 



60 



1,200-foot sea oats 



8.3 



0.1 



47 



19 



204 



2,940 



4,940 



1,620 



South Padre 400-foot sea oats 



9.0 



0.1 



5 



28 



144 



14,000 



416 



480 



Area 







Micronutrients (pounds per 



acre) 







Fe 



Mn 



B 



Ca 



Zn 



Mo 



Suggested level for agricultural lands 

 Nursery 



200 

 84 



40 

 12 



40.0 

 0.3 



4.0 



7.3 



24 

 3 



1.0 

 0.1 



1. Courtesy of Dr. William F. Bennett, Associate Dean, College of Agricultural Sciences, Texas Tech University. 



extreme north end of the island are sweet bay, common lantana (Lantana horrida), 

 prickly-ash (Zanthoxylum Clava-Herculis), and huisache (Acacia Smallii). Scattered clumps 

 of huisache are also found throughout the island, and willows (Salix nigra) are" occasionally 

 encountered. Salt-cedars (Tamarix spp.) were introduced on the north end of the island and 

 near the Dunn ranch headquarters. Considerable planting of Australian-pine (Casuarina 

 equisetifolia) is now underway in the development area. However, with the exception of 

 some common plants of sub-shrubby habit (e.g., Croton punctatus, Senecio Riddellii, 

 Borrichia frutescens), woody plants are of little importance to the vegetation structure of 

 the island. 



North Padre Island, south to southern Big Shell beach, is predominantly grassland of 

 midheight. Seacoast bluestem (Scliizachyrium scoparium yar. littoralis), seashore dropseed 

 (Sporobolus virginicus), gulfdune paspalum (Paspalum monostachyum), and saltmeadow 

 cordgrass (Spartina patens), occur from the foredune across the island. These, plus 

 broomsedge bluestem (Andropogon virginicus), and several species of panic grasses (Panicum 

 subgenus Dicanthelium) are the dominant grasses in the vegetated middle part of the island. 



34 



