Plants and the Carbon Cycle

Anytime the insect and micro soil life digests something (rots), there is a release of Carbon Dioxide, which is slightly heavier than air.

When it is being released from rotting organic material under and around plants it tends stay in or near the plant canopy before it eventually diffuses into the atmosphere.

The stomata on the leaves of plants now have an abundance of carbon dioxide for photosynthesis to create carbohydrates, the energy source, for all human and animal life.

Plants do need to transpire some water to the air. The up movement of water in the plant carries nutrients from the soil to the leaves. Also it takes water from the soil that already is, to some degree, depleted of the nutrients that were dissolved in it.

Diffusion now moves more water toward the roots that hopefully will be saturated with more plant nutrients. However this all needs to be in balance. The soil needs to be rich in soluble nutrients so little water needs to be moved up to transpiration.

The decay of organic material is greatest when temperature and moisture is also correct for plant growth. The decaying organic material on and in the soil releases plant nutrients and holds moisture and at the same time allows the plants to need less moisture. All this puts still more importance on the organic content of the soil.

The plants need the carbon dioxide from the decay of organic matter on and in the soil, but the organic material must be kept on or near the soil surface so the soil doesn’t get saturated with CO2 since the plant roots also give of Carbon Dioxide.

The carbohydrates manufactured by the leaves of plants are not all used by the leaves, they only keep a portion, and fifty to eighty percent is sent down to the roots. And the roots don’t keep it all either. A high percent of the carbohydrates is shared with the high population of soil life that live in the root zone.

Scientist tell us there are around ten thousand species of bacteria and three thousand species of fungi that use or get some benefit from this carbohydrate energy source. Then, in return, these microbes perform many services for the plants. Science is continually discovering more and more of the benefits such as protecting the plants from troublesome insects and diseases and gathering nutrients and moisture for the plants.

As long as the plant is able to create carbohydrate energy through the carbon cycle, this symbiotic relationships of life forms helping each other continues. The more energy that is created the more each species prosper and can help each other.

Sir Albert Howard, an English soil scientist, way back in the 20s and 30s discovered that when he put compost around plants they thrived with much less insect and disease problems. Howard had his compost tested and discovered the nutrient content just wasn’t high enough to give those good results. When Howard checked the plant roots he noticed a fungi growing in, around and extending from them. Research proved this to be the mycorrhizae.

The mycorrhizal fungi are now known to be extremely important to the health and production of plants. Some recent research by the USDA ARS has shown that the mycorrhizae are responsible for a large percent of the humus content formed in rich soils.

The plant physiology books tell us, a plant will grow and prosper more and more as the concentration of Carbon Dioxide goes up, even as high as ten times the normal. However, the soil plants are grown in must also be rich and balanced in the major, minor and trace nutrients the plants need. When growers tried to pump Carbon Dioxide into a greenhouse without balancing the soil it would not work.

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