3.3.

Soil Factors Affecting Nutrient Bioavailability

 The soil supports plants

 Is the physical determinant of root growth and extent

 Is the main reservoir for plant-available water and nutrients
 The soil controls the availability of most essential plant
nutrients
 It regulates availability by means of biophysiochemical
processes, which are functions of soil and plant properties.
 Introduces the concept of soil nutrient bioavailability, and the soil
factors that regulate it.

 It summarizes the processes that control nutrient release and

movement in the soil.

 The soil plant system’s capacity to supply/absorb nutrients is

termed soil nutrient bioavailability.

 The ability of the soil plant system to supply essential plant

nutrients to a target plant, or plant association, during a specific

period of time.
 1st . The release of nutrients from their solid phase in the

soil to their solution phase;

 2nd the movement of nutrients through the soil solution to

the plant root.

 3rd the absorption of nutrients by the plant root.

 Release of nutrients from the solid phase to the soil

solution is controlled by

The physiochemical processes of desorption and dissolution

 soil solution

 Cation exchange sites

 Soil organic matter

 Soil minerals

 Plant residue

 Mineralization

 Immobilization

 Nutrient uptake antagonism

 Plants take up the majority of their nutrient needs from the soil by
utilizing different transport mechanisms. 

 Different characteristics of soils affect their nutrient-holding

capacity

Soil Solution

 The soil solution is the liquid in the soil. 

 Plant nutrients (solids and gases) dissolved in the soil solution can
move into the plant as the water is taken up by the roots. 

 This is the medium through which most nutrients are taken up by

the plant.
 Cation exchange sites

 Cations are positively-charged ions (such as Ca2+, Mg2+, K+, and

NH4+) which are held on anionic (negatively-charged) exchange

sites in the soil. 

 Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC) is a measure of the amount of

cations that can be held by the soil and released into the soil solution. 

 High CEC means more nutrients are held on the soil, decreasing
their mobility and uptake

 Low CEC means that more nutrients are in the soil solution, making
them available to plants but also increasing the likelihood of leaching.
 The movement of nutrients through the soil solution to the
root–mycorrhizal surface is determined by
 Mass flow and diffusion,

 Which in turn are controlled by the interaction of soil and

plant characteristics.
 Finally, nutrient uptake at the root surface is dependent on
the amount of root–mycorrhizal surface and its uptake
characteristics.
 Those soil characteristics important to defining nutrient
bioavailability.
 Plant root growth

 Plant root function

 Nutrient mineralization
 3.3.1. Release of Nutrients from the Soil Solid Phase
 The key solid phase properties are

 (1) The quantity of labile nutrients, and

 (2) The manner of nutrient release to the soil solution.
 The term labile is defined as nutrients in a plant-accessible
form during a given time period.
 Maintenance of the soil solution’s nutrient concentration is a
central concept of soil nutrient supply.
 The quantity of nutrients in solution is low relative to a plant’s
demand and, therefore, must be replenished continuously.
 Practically all nutrient uptake occurs from the soil solution.

 Nutrients must be in solution to move effectively to the plant’s root

mycorrhizal surface.
 The solid phase maintains the soil solution nutrient concentration.

 Release from the solid phase to the soil solution occurs

 Biochemically (mineralization and immobilization) or
 Physiochemical(adsorption and desorption, and precipitation
and dissolution).
 Mineralization and immobilization are transformations of
nutrients between their organic to inorganic forms.

 These transformations are functions of

 The soil temperature system,

 Soil aeration system,

 Soil water system,

 The quality of the organic matter from which the nutrient is

mineralizing

 The population and activity of soil organisms

 3.3.2. Nutrient Movement Through the Soil Solution
 Nutrients move to roots through the solution phase.

 Movement occurs by mass flow or diffusion, or both.

 Mass flow (QMF) is defined as the quantity of nutrient flowing to

the root system with the transpiration stream
 Nutrient Availability is the section soil fertility and plant nutrition

 Nutrient Availability defined available nutrients are those that are

present in the correct chemical form for uptake by a plant during
its life cycle. 
 Available nutrients may be derived from the solid portion of
the soil or the atmosphere.
 Nutrients must be taken up as ions or molecules from soil
solution or through the leaf from the atmosphere. 
 Much of the science of soil fertility is concerned with the:
 Measurement and
Adjustment of Nutrient Availability 
 Nutrient availability
• Chemical Availability
 The nutrient in the proper chemical form and concentration for plant
needs?

• Positional Availability
 Is the nutrient accessible by the plant?
 Relates to fertilizer placement 

• Physiological Availability
 Is the plant able to take up the nutrient?
 Other growth-limiting factors can intervene 
 CHAPTER FOUR.

4.1. PLANT ROOTS AND NUTRIENT UPTAKE PROCESSES

4.1. 1. Roots and uptake processes
o The initial step of nutrients uptake by plant roots
o The physico-chemical process of the exchange and adsorption of nutrients
to root surface.
o Root cation capacity: Plant roots also exhibit CEC
o 10-30 cmols /kg for monocots such as grasses,

o 40-100 cmols /kg for dicots such as legumes

o e.g. wheat, maize, beans and tomato have C.E.C. of 23, 29, 54 and 62 cmols / kg
respectively.

16
o Legumes and other plants having high CEC tend to adsorb divalent ions like Ca+2 than

monovalent ions and the opposite is true with grasses

 E.g. The reason why the probability of in grass legume pastures where K+ is deficient the

legumes disappear and grass survives as they are more effective in absorbing monovalent

K+ than legumes.

Movement of ions from soils to roots

• Prior to absorption, nutrients reach the root by 3 mechanisms:

 Root interception

 Mass flow of ions in solution

 Diffusion of ions in the solution 17

 Root interception:
1. Root interception (contact exchange)

a. Roots grow through soil

b. Contact soil particle surfaces

c. Root surfaces contact adsorbed nutrient ions

 The absorption of a part of total ion uptake may be due to direct exchange
between the root and soil through contact exchange.
 The volume occupied by root for exploitation of ions and their uptake
increases due to root growth and also with infection by mycorrhiza.
 Since roots occupy about 1% of soil or less, the ions available through this
mechanisms may not be more than 3% of total nutrients available.
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 Factors affecting root interception

Anything that restricts root growth

Dry soil
Compaction

Low soil pH (<7)

Poor aeration

Root disease, insects, nematodes

High or low soil temperature
Root growth is necessary for all three mechanisms of
nutrient supply, but absolutely essential for root interception
to occur.
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 Mass flow

It is the movement of nutrients through the soil to roots with the

flow of water caused by water absorption by plants.
a. Dissolved nutrients carried in flow of water to plant roots
b. Flow driven by:

i. Transpiration (the major factor)

ii.Evaporation
iii.Percolation
Mass flow can occur in response to transpiration, evaporation and
percolation of water.

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 The amount of nutrient that may reach to plant root through mass
flow is determined by
Rate of flow of water or consumption of water by plants.
Nutrient concentration of soil water.
 Nutrients supplied by mass flow

 Most of the required amounts of "mobile" nutrients

i. NO3-, SO42-, Cl- , and H3BO3

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Nutrient Mass flow Diffusion Root Interception
Nitrogen XX
Phosphorus XX
Potassium XX XX
Calcium XX XX
Magnesium XX XX
Sulfur XX XX
Boron XX
Copper XX
Iron XX XX XX
Manganese XX XX
Zinc XX XX XX
Molybdenum XX
 Factors affecting mass flow
a. Soil water content
Dry soil, no nutrient movement
b. Temperature
Low temperature reduces transpiration and evaporation
c. Size of root system
Affects water uptake (and therefore movement)
Root density much less critical for nutrient supply by mass
flow than for root interception and diffusion

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 Diffusion
Ion movement from an area of high concentration to an area of low
concentration
i. Roots absorb nutrients from soil solution
ii. Concentration at root surface decreases compared to "bulk" soil
solution
iii. Ions diffuse down concentration gradient toward root surface
Role of Diffusion
Diffusion is the main mechanism for the movement of P and K and other
nutrients with low concentrations in the soil solution to the root surface
• The driving force for diffusion is a concentration gradient
24
 Nutrients moved by diffusion
Important for nutrients that interact strongly with the soil
Primary mechanism for supplying P and K

Important for micronutrients, especially Fe and Zn

Large for mobile ions like NO3-

Small for slowly diffusing ions like PO43-

25
 Factors controlling diffusion
Concentration gradients /magnitude of the diffusion gradient
Soil moisture

Cross sectional area

Temperature:

Root distance:

Absorption rate of ions

26
 Temperature:
 Uptake of ions by plants, is strongly influenced by temperature.
 Within a range of 10-300C, the increase in 100C causes the rate of
ions uptake go by a factor of 2 or more.
Root distance:

Diffusion is slow even under moist conditions and will occur for very
short distances
e.g. typical average distance to which different nutrient will diffuse are:
N-1 cm,

P-0.02 cm,
K-0.2 cm

27
 Absorption rate of ions
o Roots do not absorb all the ions at the same rate.
o Therefore, certain ions which are absorbed comparatively at slower rate
will build up near the root surface and give rise to phenomenon known as
‘back diffusion’ in which concentration and hence movement will be away
from the roots, although it is less than the movement towards the roots.

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 Ion exchange
Soil is composed of three different phases; solid, liquid and air.
It has different ions; cations (positive ions) and anions (negative
ions).
In the soil system, there is exchange of ions between solid and
liquid phases on the surface of clay minerals, inorganic or organic
compounds and plant roots.
Ion exchange is a reversible process by which a cation or anion in
solid phase is exchanged with another cation (anion) in liquid
phase.

29
If the exchange occurs between positively charged ions, it is cation
exchange and the capacity of a soil to adsorb and release cations
from the surface of the soil solid is called Cation Exchange
Capacity (CEC).

If the exchange occurs between negatively charged ions, it is anion

exchange and the ability of a soil to adsorb and release anions from
the surface of the soil solid is called Anion Exchange Capacity
(AEC).

30
 Mineral nutrition and plant growth

Definition of terminologies

Several terms are commonly used to describe the levels of nutrient elements concentration in

plants.

A. Deficient
 When the concentration of essential element is low enough to limit the yield and distinct

deficiency symptoms are visible.

 In the extreme deficiency the plant may die.

 With moderate or slight deficiency the symptoms may not be visible but yield will still

be reduced.
 There is severe effect on yield when nutrient is deficient and

 when the deficiency is corrected there is rapid increase in yield

 B . Critical range:
It is the nutrient concentration in plant below which a yield response occurs with
added nutrient.
Critical levels may vary with plants and nutrient, but it is somewhere in the
transition between nutrient deficiency and sufficiency
C. Sufficient:
It is the nutrient concentration range in which addition of nutrient will not
increase the yield but can increase concentration of nutrient in the plant.

The term luxury consumption is used to describe nutrient absorption which does
not influence the yield.
 D. Excessive or toxic:
When the concentration of essential or other elements is high
enough to reduce yield and plant growth.
 Excess of one nutrient may cause imbalance in other nutrients
which may also reduce yields.
 Criteria For Essentiality Of Elements In Plant Nutrition

• A more precise set of criteria for essentiality were established by

Arnon and Stout in 1939
 Accordingly, N, P, K, Ca, Mg, S, B, Cl, Fe, Mn, Zn, Cu, and Mo
have been identified as essential mineral nutrient elements.
 C, H and O2 are considered as essential non-mineral elements
 Not all are required for all plants, but have been found to be
essential to some plants
The essentiality criteria are as follows:
 A deficiency of the element makes it impossible for the plant to
complete its life cycle
 The deficiency is specific for the element in question (no other
element can substitute fully for the element being considered as a
essential nutrient).
 A partial substitution might be possible.
 For example, a substitution of Mn for Mg in enzymatic
reactions may occur, but no other element will substitute
for magnesium for constituent of chlorophyll
 The element is directly involved in an essential metabolite activity
 Categories of Essential Elements

 Out of these 17 elements, carbon (C) and oxygen are obtained

from the gas CO2, and hydrogen (H) is obtained from water
(H2O).
 These three elements are required in large quantities for the
production of plant constituents such as cellulose or starch.

Means, they are the most abundant elements in the plant tissue.
The other 15 elements are called mineral nutrients because they
are taken up in mineral (inorganic) forms.
 Carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, phosphorus, sulfur and nitrogen are
elements from which proteins and protoplasm are composed of. .
The CO2 and H2O through photosynthesis, converted to simple
carbohydrates from which amino acids, sugars, proteins, nucleic
acids and other organic compounds.
O2, C and H make up 95 percent of plant biomass and the remaining
5 percent is made up of all other elements.
 Classification of Mineral Essential Elements
They are traditionally divided into two groups, macronutrients and micronutrients,

according to the amounts required by plants.

Regardless of the amount required, physiologically, all of them are equally

important.
The 15 mineral elements are taken up by plants in specific chemical forms

regardless of their source.

Macronutrients: Nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), Potassium (K), Sulfur (S),

Calcium (Ca) and Magnesium (Mg) are required relatively in large quantities.
Micronutrients: Iron (Fe), Zinc (Zn), Manganese (Mn), Copper (Cu), Boron (B),

Chlorine (Cl), Molybdenum (Mo) and Nickel (Ni) are required relatively in small

quantities.
 Some additional elements: Sodium (Na), Vanadium (V), and
silicon (Si) have been established as micronutrients in some plants.
 From a management perspective only, the macronutrients are
classified into:
Primary nutrients -N, P, and K, because they are most often
limiting crop production.
Secondary nutrients - Ca, Mg, S because they are more rarely
limiting, and more rarely added to soils as fertilizers.
Table: List of the 18 elements essential for plant growth
 Nutrients that are mobile in the plant will move to new growth areas
so the deficiency symptoms will first show up in the older leaves.
 Nutrients that are not mobile in the plant will not move to the new
growth so the deficiency symptoms show up first in the new growth
 In general, nutrient needs increase as the plant grows through the
seedling stage into the reproductive stages
 When the plants are young and small, the need for nutrients is low
 Once the plants get larger and start to grow rapidly, the needs
increase dramatically
 Other important nutrients
 As humans and domestic animals require several nutrients in
addition to those required by plants, these additional nutrients
should also be considered in food or feed production, and their
deficiencies corrected by appropriate inputs.
 In addition to plant nutrients, the elements essential for humans
and domestic animals are: Cobalt (Co), selenium (Se), chromium
(Cr) and iodine (I).
NUTRIENTS: THEIR FUNCTIONS, MOBILITY IN PLANTS
AND DEFICIENCY/TOXICITY SYMPTOMS
MACRONUTRIENTS
Nitrogen and Its Availability to Plants
 The productivity of most environments, including agro-
ecosystems, is limited by the availability of nitrogen.
 Nitrogen is the first most important essential nutrient required
relatively in large amounts by plants while soils generally
contain relatively small amounts of this element.
 Very few soils can sustain satisfactory crop production without
the addition of nitrogen
 The atmospheric column on a hectare of land will contain
approximately 8.4*104 mg nitrogen ha-1
 Yet for growing most cereals and non-legume forage crops, one
has to apply large amounts of manure and/or fertilizer N.
 Influence of Nitrogen on Plant Growth and Development

I. Function of Nitrogen
 Nitrogen (N) is an essential nutrient used in relatively large
amounts by all living things.
 It is critically important to plants because it is a fundamental
part of the chlorophyll molecule and essential in the formation
of amino acids,
 Which are the building blocks of all proteins:-including the
enzymes, which control virtually all biological processes.
 Nitrogen is also essential for carbohydrate production within
plants.
A good supply of N stimulates root growth and development, as
well as the uptake of other nutrients.
Plants respond quickly to increased availability of nitrogen, their
leaves turning deep green in color.
Nitrogen increases the size of cereal grains, the protein content of
both seeds and foliage.
It can dramatically stimulate plant productivity whether measured
in tons of grain, volume of lumber / timber, carrying capacity of
pasture, or thickness of grass.
 II. Nitrogen Deficiency
• Plants deficient in N become
– stunted and yellow (chlorotic) in appearance.
• Since plants can remobilize N from older tissue to younger tissue,
– chlorosis usually appears on the lower/bottom/older leaves first while the
upper leaves remain green.
• Nitrogen deficient
Plants often have a low shoot-to-root ratio,
They mature more quickly than healthy plants,
The protein content is low
The sugar content is high