Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
Nutrient concentration ranges in plant dry matter are used to evaluate plant health and diagnose nutrient deficiencies or toxicities.
Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
Calcium (Ca) is an essential secondary macronutrient required by plants.
It is a key component of the cell wall (as calcium pectate in the middle lamella), where it provides structural strength and stability to plant tissues.
It also acts as an intracellular messenger in various physiological pathways and regulates membrane permeability.
In healthy, actively growing plants, the calcium concentration in dry tissue typically ranges between $0.2\%$ and $1.0\%$ (or $2,000\text{ to }10,000 \text{ ppm}$).
This concentration varies depending on the plant species:
- Monocots (like grasses and cereals) generally have lower calcium requirements, with concentrations near the lower end of the range ($0.2\%$).
- Dicots (like legumes and broadleaf plants) have higher calcium requirements, with tissue concentrations often exceeding $1.0\%$.
Therefore, $0.2-1.0\%$ represents the standard physiological range of calcium in healthy plant tissues.
Step 3: Final Answer:
The calcium content in healthy plants ranges between $0.2-1.0\%$, corresponding to option (C).