The Chemical Compounds Of Synthetic Fertilizer

Poor soil management can lead to biological, chemical, and physical degradation, which can in turn negatively alter the activity of

The pH of soil is important for the absorption of nutrients into the plant. Of the 17 needed plant nutrients 14 of them are acquired through the soil. Acidity is needed to break down and dissolve these nutrients. The nutrients are able to dissolve into the soil faster when the acid is acting as a solute. Another way the pH affects the soil is by influencing microorganisms. The bacteria is crucial in the growth and development of the plant, the bacteria’s role is to break down and decompose organic matter in the soil. If the pH of the soil is too high the acid will slow down and eventually stop the microorganisms. Most plants ideal pH is between 6-7, slightly acidic. Many plants are outliers and thrive in pH such as carrots and corn, which can withstand pH as low as 5.5. If the pH of the soil is too high for the desired crop farmers can add material such as limestone, and wood ashes to raise the pH to the desired level. The pH of the soil can also be changed naturally through the leaching of calcium, magnesium and sodium by rainwater. Carbon dioxide from rotting organic matter can also increase the pH of the soil. Acids can also be created organically in the form of sulfuric and nitric

Human activities such as the use of fertilizers in yard soil contribute to the accumulation of nutrients. When using fertilizers, the ground can only absorb so much. The use of excess fertilizers on crops allows for nitrogen to vaporize in the atmosphere through a process called volatilization (Olascoaga, 2010). Crop fertilizer also leaches nitrogen into groundwater, which eventually ends up in the ocean. When the ground is at its maximum absorbance, high concentration levels are obtained and carried through the waste system into rivers. Another factor is sewage from the increasing human population. Septic tanks are widely used unless a household is connected to wastewater treatment plants. Septic tanks purify waste by leaching the waste through soil. Storm water runoff is another source of nutrient for algal blooms. Rainfall picks up nutrients from yards and flushes these nutrients into

Soil bacteria convert nitrogen gas into usable forms for plants; they decompose wastes into nutrients we use; they help produce various foods such as bread, cheese, wine, beer, and tofu.

According to the European Union’s Joint Research Center, soil contains nearly one third of all living organisms, but only about one percent have been identified. Another study in 2003 featured in the journal Ecosystems estimated that 5% of the United State’s soil biodiversity was “in danger of substantial loss, or complete extinction, due to agriculture and urbanization.” (Robbins) The damage comes from multiple sources. Paving or building over soil effectively blocks out the air, water, and light needed to have a functioning soil biome meaning that roads, cities, sidewalks, houses, and businesses have destroyed the soil beneath it. Agricultural practices remove organic material, decreasing food, and then allows fallowed land to become dry and exposed to the elements. Household, industrial, and agricultural toxins can also sterilize soil if not disposed of

Endosymbiotic systems have been identified and proved in plants. Most plants are hosts for endosymbiotic bacteria mostly for nutritional benefits. To acquire nutrients containing nitrogen, most plants have been proven to have the nitrogen-fixing bacteria. Plants require critical nutrients for development and growth. However, to obtain such nutrients from the soil, the plants degrade the endosymbiotic bacteria. For instance, most plants rely on nitrogen-fixing bacteria to acquire nitrogen nutrients since their genomes lack nitrogenase enzyme system hence the plant cannot access the nitrogen directly. It is evident on how certain grasses have the capability of extracting nutrients from the endosymbiotic bacteria. For instance, through oxidation, the plants extract nutrients from nitrogen-fixing proteobacteria. Other plants phagocytize the bacteria to acquire the nutrients (White et al., 2012).

There are many phases in the nitrogen cycle where bacteria is helpful to move along a phase or process that takes place. Like Rhizobium is a bacterium that helps in aid the nitrogen fixation phase. Rhizobium is a small heterotrophic soil bacteria capable of forming symbiotic nodules on the roots of leguminous (seeds of plants or fruits) plants and become bacteria that fixes atmospheric nitrogen (Merriam Webster). It has rod shape (bacillus) bacteria that forms staph colonies. They are motile, so they can move. Rhizobium, is an aerobic bacterium, therefore it must have oxygen to grow into colonies. It grows best at 25 degrees Celsius or 77 degrees F. Basically, rhizobium turns the free nitrogen air into ammonia and nitrate for plant assimilation.

Since the dawn of the industrial revolution in the 19th century, both food production and the world’s population have experienced dramatic increases. The last five years have seen particularly significant benchmarks, with the world population reaching 7 billion in 2011. Looking to the future, experts have estimated that the population is likely to surpass 9 billion by 2050. As a result, the same amount of land (30% of the earth’s surface) will be expected to feed increasing numbers of people. The area will have to be used more intensively leading to soil deployment. For the above reasons fertilizers, will be in great

While Mark Watney is stuck on Mars, he knows that he has little, if any, chance of survival. So he comes up with a plan to plant food on a planet where nothing grows. “Once I get some Martian soil in here, I can mix in the sh*t and spread it out. Then I can sprinkle the Earth soil on top. You might not think that would be an important step, but it is. There are dozens of species of bacteria living in Earth soil, and they’re critical to plant growth. They’ll spread out and breed like… well like a bacterial infection. People have been using human waste as fertilizer for centuries.” (Weir 14). Watney knows that nothing can grow in plain Martian soil, so he uses the vacuum dried feces from his crewmates and himself to mix in with the Martian soil to spread bacteria so that he can grow crops. His

When you pick up a handful of soil from outside you are not only picking up soil you are picking up a handful of microbes. In that one handful there are many different varieties of living microbes, they range from algae, fungi, bacteria and many more. “A single teaspoon of that soil contains over 1,000,000,000 bacteria, about 120,000 fungi and 25,000 algae.”(Microbe World) They are found everywhere that you can think of on Earth, this includes the ground, air, plants and animals. Microbes are one of the oldest living things on Earth they have been around for billion of years and continue to live here under any conditions because they are constantly adapting to the environment that they live in. “These environments range from the boiling waters of hot springs in Yellowstone National Park to the freezing temperatures of Antarctica.” (Microbe World)

To become biologically available, inert nitrogen gas (N2) must become “fixed,” or combined with hydrogen in nature to form ammonium ions (NH4), which are chemically and biologically active and can be taken up by plants. However, once nitrogen undergoes the right kind of chemical change, it becomes available to the organisms that need it and can then act as a potent fertilizer.

Microorganisms have developed multiple direct and indirect mechanisms that protect them against the environmental stresses they encounter. One of the most severe and widespread problems facing crop production is the degradation of soil quality due to desiccation and salinity, and almost 40% of the world’s land surface is affected by salinity-related problems (Zahran 1999, Veron, 2006). Water, and its availability, is one of the most vital environmental factors to affect the growth and survival of microorganisms (Potts 1994).

The actual cause of pH rise in mutant soil samples is not studied but is assumed to be related to the genotype. However, Hacquard et al. (2015) reported that it is difficult to unravel the actual contribution of pH on the overall community structure owing to likely interaction with numerous other factors. Moreover, another study proposed that many types of bacteria, in both the gut and the soil, are sensitive to pH, and this is thought to structure communities to a large extend (Duncan et. al., 2009). Similarly, Dix and Webster (1995) reported that soil pH may directly influence fungal community composition by creating a physiological limitation on fungal survival and growth and some fungal taxa may be unable to grow or survive if the soil pH falls outside a certain range, moreover, fungi generally grow well in acidic conditions. However, some fungi develop well in neutral to slightly alkaline conditions (Warcup, 1951; Yamanaka, 2003). Our results are in consistent with those from the previous studies, in that the pH was slightly alkaline for esl mutant soil samples than those of the wild type variety. This observation implies that some members in the same taxa may have different pH preferences.

Any residual chemicals, those not absorbed by plant life or consumed by microbes, are then transported to other areas through hydrological processing. The hydrological cycle is very intricate, involving the movement of chemical additives found in synthetic fertilizer by way of water travel. As Killebrew and Wolff detailed in their article, “Environmental Impacts of Agricultural Technologies,” water transport includes leaching, run-off, and erosion, usually caused by over-watering or precipitation, such as rainfall and melting snow. In essence, when water needs to drain, it has two primary alternatives for dispersal. Foremost, accumulated water can percolate into the soil and travel past the root zone, where it soaks into the aquifer. This process, referred to as leaching, allows chemical-containing water to drain into groundwater, which is primarily used as drinking water. Alternatively, a process known as run-off allows water to drain off the surface. Contaminated water can then be leaked into springs, rivers, lakes, bays, and oceans directly, or by man-made channels, such as storm drains. Together, leaching and run-off can induce erosion, which transports vast quantities of tainted soil and water to surrounding areas. Chemicals such as ammonium (NH4+), nitrate (NO3-N), and nitrite (NO2-N) travel to surface waters, both inland and coastal, and groundwater, allowing it to become polluted to the extent that it can no longer be used for consumption or maintain the ability to

From a practical point of view, anionic polyacrylamide (PAM) has been commonly used as a soil conditioner to reduce erosion by clay flocculation and binding particles and stabilizing the outer aggregate surfaces. Moreover, PAM is highly resistant to microbial degradation, with a decomposition rate of ∼10% yr-1, which has led to its efficient use as a soil conditioner for long periods. Wu et al. (2012) revealed that PAM showed a minor effect on 14C allocation in plant parts and soil in a short-term 14C labeling study. Except the observations of PAM biotransformation, little information is available on the PAM efficiency on the microbial activity in soils. In contrast, the agronomic benefits of biochar (BC) application to improve soil quality and increase SOM is growing. Applying BC improves the physicochemical properties of soil and maintains C and N sources, owing to a pronounced increase in plant growth and yield. Moreover, wood biochar decreased the soil bulk density and enlarged diameter of aggregates, thereby reducing soil loss. However, little is known about the effect of BC on soil microbial populations and activities. BC or PAM showed minor effect on the decomposition of SOM based on CO2 evolution because of the stability of these conditioners. A high portion of 14C- maize residues were stabilized in the soil after adding BC and PAM as the binders by the occlusion of labile residue-C into aggregates. Understanding the short-term dynamics of C caused by PAM or BC is