What Is the nitrogen cycle and why is it key to life?
File(s)
Published version
Author(s)
Aczel, Miriam R
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Nitrogen, the most abundant element in our atmosphere, is crucial to
life. Nitrogen is found in soils and plants, in the water we drink, and
in the air we breathe. It is also essential to life: a key building block
of DNA, which determines our genetics, is essential to plant growth,
and therefore necessary for the food we grow. But as with everything,
balance is key: too little nitrogen and plants cannot thrive, leading
to low crop yields; but too much nitrogen can be toxic to plants,
and can also harm our environment. Plants that do not have enough
nitrogen become yellowish and do not grow well and can have smaller
flowers and fruits. Farmers can add nitrogen fertilizer to produce better
crops, but too much can hurt plants and animals, and pollute our
aquatic systems. Understanding the Nitrogen Cycle—how nitrogen
moves from the atmosphere to earth, through soils and back to the
atmosphere in an endless Cycle—can help us grow healthy crops and
protect our environment.
life. Nitrogen is found in soils and plants, in the water we drink, and
in the air we breathe. It is also essential to life: a key building block
of DNA, which determines our genetics, is essential to plant growth,
and therefore necessary for the food we grow. But as with everything,
balance is key: too little nitrogen and plants cannot thrive, leading
to low crop yields; but too much nitrogen can be toxic to plants,
and can also harm our environment. Plants that do not have enough
nitrogen become yellowish and do not grow well and can have smaller
flowers and fruits. Farmers can add nitrogen fertilizer to produce better
crops, but too much can hurt plants and animals, and pollute our
aquatic systems. Understanding the Nitrogen Cycle—how nitrogen
moves from the atmosphere to earth, through soils and back to the
atmosphere in an endless Cycle—can help us grow healthy crops and
protect our environment.
Date Acceptance
2019-02-18
Citation
Frontiers for Young Minds, 7
Publisher
Frontiers Media SA
Journal / Book Title
Frontiers for Young Minds
Volume
7
Copyright Statement
© 2019 Aczel. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
Publication Status
Published online
Article Number
41
Date Publish Online
2019-03-12