plant nutrition

Question 1

essential nutrients

Answer 1

affect some aspect of plant growth or development, not all nutrients in a plant are essential

Question 2

phytoremediation

Answer 2

planting toxin resistant plants in contaminated soils to draw up toxins, must be harvested to prevent releasing them back

Question 3

macronutrients

Answer 3

make up more than 1000mg/kg of dry plant mass greater than 0.1%

Question 4

micronutrients

Answer 4

make up less than 100mg/kg of dry plant mass less than 0.01%

Question 5

deer on the isle of rum

Answer 5

turned to carnivory of chicks for a calcium source due to lack of nutrients available from plants

Question 6

structural nutrients

Answer 6

nutrients are present in essential molecules; S, Mg, N, C, H, O, Ca

Question 7

ionic nutrients

Answer 7

set up ion gradients; K, Cl, H

Question 8

enzymatic nutrients

Answer 8

can be a part of an enzyme or a cofactor; Ca, Fe, K, Mn

Question 9

cations

Answer 9

bound to negatively charged soil particles absorbed through cation exchange

Question 10

anions

Answer 10

unable to bind to the soil causing them to leach when it rains, makes them limiting nutrients

Question 11

cation exchange

Answer 11

cations bound to the soil are exchanged hydrogen cations to release the nutrient cations for plants to uptake them; plants prefer acidic soils

Question 12

ways plants increase soil acidity

Answer 12

passively releasing CO2 which reacts with water giving off H+ ions or by actively pumping out H+

Question 13

biochemical cycling

Answer 13

releases nutrients into soil for plants to use in ecosystems through a mixture of geological and biological processes

Question 14

The Nitrogen cycle

Answer 14

nitrogen is abundant in the atmosphere as gaseous N2 but plants can only use NH4 or NO3, NO3 is preferred; Nitrogen fixation to nitrification to ammonification to denitrification

Question 15

nitrogen fixation

Answer 15

can be done by nitrogen fixing bacteria or lightning converting N2 in the air to ammonia in the soil

Question 16

nitrification

Answer 16

another bacteria converts ammonia to nitrates which are used by plants and then consumed by animals

Question 17

ammonification

Answer 17

decomposing organic matter releases organic nitrogen which is converted by bacteria to ammonia

Question 18

denitrification

Answer 18

bacteria convert nitrates back to N2 in the air

Question 19

ways humans altered the nitrogen cycle

Answer 19

combustion of fossil fuels produce NOx gas, atmospheric Nitrogen deposition brings NOx gases back down to earth as fixed nitrogen, reduction of wetlands and swamps decreases denitrification, increased use of nitrogen fertilizers, increased manure, increased legume farming increases nitrogen fixation

Question 20

eutrophication

Answer 20

excess nutrients in an ecosystem caused by increased nitrogen or phosphorous, most problematic in aquatic communities causing algal blooms which block sunlight, suck up oxygen, and secrete toxins

Question 21

phosphorous cycle

Answer 21

important for DNA and cell membranes, erodes off the bedrock into the soil for plants to take it up, collection for fertilizers and detergent causes eutrophication

Question 22

carnivory

Answer 22

method developed to cope with low nutrient soils, plants get N and P from animals and still undergo photosynthesis

Question 22

PA carnivorous plants

Answer 22

sundew, pitcher plant, bladderwort

Question 23

coprophagy

Answer 23

method to cope with low nutrient soil by consuming poop in a symbiotic relationship with small mammals