Dan EvansDr. J. CawlyPlant BiologyMay 6, 2013Specialization Article: Plant NutritionPlant nutrition is an area of ​​plant biology that is of the utmost importance for plant proliferation. Without proper nutrition, plants would simply cease to exist unless drastic changes were made. Certain elements are necessary for the growth and reproduction of the plant; these elements are called essential elements. There are three requirements of an essential element: the element must be necessary for the completion of the plant's life cycle, the element must not be replaceable by another element as a whole, and finally the element must be a direction involved in the metabolism of the plant. The chemical compounds involved in good nutrition have been designated as nutrients and then classified as macronutrients and micronutrients. Macronutrients are necessary for growth, metabolism, and many other functions, but are called "macro" because they are needed in larger quantities. Macronutrients include carbohydrates, proteins and fat molecules. Micronutrients have a much broader function that depends on the exact micronutrient. Micronutrients are so called because they are needed in much smaller amounts than macronutrients. Examples of micronutrients include vitamins and minerals. When studying plant nutrition, it is important to analyze the sources of nutrition. Plants absorb their nutrients using their roots in the soil, but soil is not a uniform nutrient source. The well-being of the plant largely depends on the quality, composition and thickness of the soil. To help categorize such a broad topic, scientists have come up with a naming system for different soil levels. The first layer is closest to the middle of the paper......geochemical cycles. By increasing the amount of crops removed from the ground and the resulting soil erosion, phosphorus levels in the soil have fallen. Phosphorus lost in soils moves into aquatic ecosystems, which can then cause massive algae blooms. Increased use of nitrogen-based fertilizers has also changed this cycle. Fertilizers add high levels of nitrates to the soil, and in natural ecosystems nitrates will undergo denitrification and be returned as atmospheric nitrogen. This is not the case because nitrate levels exceed the levels of denitrification that bacteria can handle. Additionally, much of the denitrifying bacteria is found in marshes and wetlands, which are currently being destroyed at an incredible rate. In some areas, excess nitrate has seeped into groundwater and contaminated the drinking water system..