Nutrients are the essential components that are required for the growth and normal functioning of living organisms. Like animals, plants also need essential life supporting components to carry out their functions.
There are sixteen nutrients which are essential for the plant growth and are supplied to by air, water and soil.
Air supplies carbon and oxygen, hydrogen comes from water.
Soil supplies the other thirteen nutrients to plants.
Depending upon the concentration of nutrients required by plants, they are classified as macronutrients and micronutrients.
Macronutrients are defined as those essential nutrients which are required in larger quantities [1000ppm or mg/kg of dry weight of plant tissue]. There are six macronutrients that are provided by soil.
Micronutrients are defined as those essential nutrients which are required in small quantities or traces [1ppm or mg/kg of dry weight of plant tissue]. There are seven micronutrients that are provided by soil.
Deficiency of these nutrients affects physiological processes in plants including reproduction, growth and susceptibility to disease.
Soil can be enriched with nutrients by adding manures or fertilizers so as to increase the product yield.
