Nutrition of mineral plants: the basic elements and functions of various elements for plants

Any plant is a real living organism, and in order for its development to proceed fully, vital conditions are required: light, air, moisture and nutrition. All of them are equivalent and the lack of one has a detrimental effect on the general condition. In this article we will talk about such an important component in the life of plants, like mineral nutrition.

Features of the food process

Being the main source of energy, without which all life processes are extinguished, food is needed for every organism. Consequently, nutrition is not just an important, but one of the main conditions for the qualitative growth of plants, and they extract food by using all the above-ground parts and the root system. By means of roots, they extract water and the necessary mineral salts from the ground, replenishing the necessary stock of substances, carrying out soil or mineral nutrition of plants.

Essential role in this process is allocated to root hairs, therefore similar nutrition has one more name - root. With the help of these threadlike hairs, the plant draws water solutions of various chemical elements from the ground.

They work on the principle of the pump and are located on the root in the suction zone. Salt solutions entering the hair tissue are moved to the conducting cells - tracheids and vessels. According to them, substances enter the wire zones of the root, then spread along the stems to all the above-ground parts.

Elements of mineral nutrition of plants

So, the food for the representatives of the vegetable kingdom is the substances obtained from the soil. The nutrition of mineral or soil plants is the unity of different processes: from absorption and advancement to assimilation of elements in the soil in the form of mineral salts. The study of the ash left over by the plants showed how much chemical elements there are in it and the number of them in different parts and different representatives of the flora is not the same. This is an indication that chemical elements are absorbed and accumulate in plants. Such experiments led to the following conclusions: the elements found in all plants - phosphorus, calcium, potassium, sulfur, iron, magnesium, as well as microelements represented by zinc, copper, boron, manganese, etc., are vitally important.

Despite the different amounts of these substances, they are found in any plant, and replacement by one element of the other is impossible under any conditions. The level of the presence of mineral substances in the soil is very important, since the yield of crops and the decorativeness of flowering depend on this. In different soils, the degree of saturation of the soil with the necessary substances is also different. For example, in the temperate latitudes of Russia there is a significant shortage of nitrogen and phosphorus, sometimes potassium, so it is mandatory to introduce fertilizers - nitrogen and potash phosphorus. Each element has its own role in the life of the plant organism.

Proper nutrition of plants (mineral) stimulates qualitative development, which is carried out only when all the necessary substances in the right amount are in the soil. If there is a shortage or a surplus of some of them, the plants react by changing the color of the foliage. Therefore, one of the important conditions for the agricultural technology of agricultural crops are the developed norms for introducing fertilizer and fertilizer. Note that many plants are better to underfeed than overfeed. For example, for all berry garden crops and their wild-growing forms, it is the excess of food that is destructive. We learn how different substances interact with the tissues of the plant, and what each of them affects.

Nitrogen

One of the most necessary elements for plant growth is nitrogen. It is present in proteins and amino acids. Nitrogen deficiency manifests itself in a change in the color of the leaves: at first the leaf shrinks and turns red. A significant shortage causes an unhealthy yellow-green color or a bronze-red coating. The first ones are affected by older leaves from below on the shoots, then along the entire stem. With the continuing deficit, the growth of branches and the tying of fruit ceases.

Excess fertilization with nitrogen compounds leads to an increased nitrogen content in the soil. At the same time, rapid growth of shoots and intensive growth of green mass are observed, which does not allow the plant to lay flower buds. As a result, the productivity of the plant is markedly reduced. That is why the balanced mineral soil nutrition of plants is so important.

Phosphorus

No less important in plant life and this element. It is a constituent part of nucleic acids, the combination of which with proteins form nucleoproteins, which are part of the nucleus of the cell. Phosphorus is concentrated in the tissues of plants, their flowers and seeds. In many ways, the ability of trees to resist natural disasters depends on the availability of phosphorus. He is responsible for frost resistance and comfortable wintering. Deficiency of the element is manifested in the slowing down of cell division, the cessation of plant growth and the development of the root system, the foliage acquires a lilac-red shade. The aggravation of the situation threatens the plant with death.

Potassium

Mineral substances for plant nutrition include potassium. It is necessary in the greatest quantities, since it stimulates the absorption, biosynthesis and transportation of vital elements to all parts of the plant. Normal supply of potassium increases the resistance of the plant organism, stimulates protective mechanisms, drought and cold resistance. Flowering and fruit formation with sufficient supply of potassium are more effective: flowers and fruits are much larger and brighter colored.

If the element lacks growth, the growth slows down considerably, and a strong deficit leads to a thinning and fragility of the stems, a change in the color of the leaves to violet-bronze. Then the leaves dry and collapse.

Calcium

Normal soil nutrition of plants (mineral) is impossible without calcium, which is present in virtually all cells of the plant organism, stabilizing their functionality. This element is especially important for the qualitative growth and work of the root system. Lack of calcium is accompanied by a delay in root growth and an inefficient formation of the root system. There is a lack of calcium in the reddening of the edges of the upper leaves on young shoots. An increasing deficit will add a purple color over the entire leaf area. If calcium does not enter the plant, then the leaves of the shoots of this year wither with the tops.

Magnesium

The process of mineral nutrition of plants with normal development is impossible without magnesium. Being a part of chlorophyll, it is an indispensable element of the process of photosynthesis. By activating enzymes that take part in the metabolism, magnesium stimulates the laying of growth buds, germination of seeds and other reproductive activities.

Signs of a lack of magnesium - the appearance of a reddish hue at the base of the leaves, spreading along the central conductor and occupying up to two thirds of the leaf plate. A strong deficiency of magnesium leads to necrosis of the leaf, a decrease in the plant's productivity and its decorativeness.

Iron

Responsible for the normal breathing of plants, this element is indispensable in oxidation-reduction processes, because it is the acceptor of oxygen molecules and synthesizes the precursor substances of chlorophyll. With iron deficiency, the plant affects chlorosis: the leaves become lighter and thinner, becoming yellowish-green, and then bright yellow with dark rusty spots. Violation of breathing provokes a slowdown in plant growth, a significant reduction in yield.

Manganese

While not exaggerating the importance of the necessary trace elements, let us recall how plants and soil react to them. Mineral nutrition of plants is supplemented with manganese, which is mandatory for the productive flow of photosynthetic processes, as well as the synthesis of proteins, etc. Manganese deficiency manifests itself in a weak young growth, and a strong deficit makes it unviable-the leaves on the stems turn yellow, the tips of the shoots wither.

Zinc

This micronutrient is an active participant in the process of auxin formation and a plant growth catalyst. As an obligatory component of chloroplasts, zinc is present in the photochemical splitting of water. It is necessary for the fertilization and development of the egg. Zinc deficiency becomes noticeable at the end of the vegetative period and during rest - the leaves acquire a lemon shade.

Copper

Nutrition of plants mineral or root will be incomplete without this trace element. Included in a number of enzymes, copper activates such important processes as plant breathing, protein and carbohydrate metabolism. Derivatives of copper are the essential components of photosynthesis. The disadvantage of this element is the drying of the apical shoots.

Bor

Stimulating synthesis of amino acids, carbohydrates and proteins, boron is present in many enzymes that regulate metabolism. A sign of an acute shortage of boron is the appearance of mottled spots on young stems and a bluish tint of leaves at the base of the shoots. Further deficiency of the element leads to destruction of the foliage and death of the young growth. Flowering is weak and unproductive - the fruits are not tied.

We listed the main chemical elements necessary for normal development, quality flowering and fruiting. All of them, properly balanced, make up the quality mineral nutrition of plants. And the value of water is also difficult to overestimate, because all substances from the soil come in dissolved form.