Table 1.

General characteristics of the sampling sites and of conditions during the sampling period^a

Glacier	Altitude (m above sea level)	Exposition	Bedrock	Avg pH^b	Avg TC [mg (g soil dry wt)⁻¹]^b	Avg TN [mg (g soil dry wt)⁻¹]^b	Avg recession (m)^c	Slope (%)	Mean sunshine (h)^d	Mean precipitation (mm)^d	Dominant plant species^e
Tiefen	2,510	Southeast	Siliceous	5.50	<0.08	<0.001	−15	11.5	150.13	100.75	Leodonton montanum
Griessen	2,450	West	Calcareous	7.07	2.16 ï¿½ 0.79	<0.010	−12.5	25	110.28	128.75	Saxifraga sp.

↵a Geographical data represent the area where the incubation pots were placed.
↵b The values represent averages in the incubation pots measured at the different time points.
↵c Estimated from recession data since 1990.
↵d Data averaged from the CLIMAP database.
↵e The characterization was based on our own observations in the vicinity of the sampling sites.