list of essential plant nutrients for growth and development

The essential plant nutrients, or essential elements, are listed in the table below.  It enumerates 16 chemical elements of which the essentiality for plant growth and reproduction has been established according to the criteria formulated by D.I. Arnon and P.R. Stout  in 1939. This listing has existed since 1954 with chlorine as the latest addition (cited by Hopkins 1999)

These plant nutrients are classified into various groups:

1. Major elements and trace elements. Of the 16 listed,  9 are major elements or macronutrients and 7 are trace elements or micronutrients. Major elements are those which are needed by plants for their growth and reproduction in relatively large amounts while trace elements are needed in smaller amounts compared to the former. The major elements are further subclassified into structural elements (carbon, oxygen and hydrogen), primary macronutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium), and secondary macronutrients (calcium, sulfur, and magnesium). 

2. Mineral and non-mineral nutrients. Mineral nutrients are absorbed by plants primarily in ionic form from the soil while non-mineral nutrients are absorbed either from the soil or from the atmosphere as a component of compounds. The elements numbered 4 to 16 in the list are considered mineral nutrients. The carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen are considered non-mineral nutrients. They are sourced from carbon dioxide (CO2) and water (H2O) which are reactants in the process of photosynthesis.

Table EPN-1. List of essential elements or essential plant nutrients.

ELEMENT ATOMIC WEIGHT FORMS ABSORBED RANGE OF CONCENTRATION
IN DRY TISSUE*
Major Elements or Macronutrients
1. Carbon (C) 12.01 CO2 45% (450,000 ppm)
2. Oxygen (O) 16.00 CO2, O2 45% (450,000 ppm)
3. Hydrogen (H) 1.01 H20 6% (60,000 ppm)
4. Nitrogen (N) 14.01 NO3-, NH4+ 0.5-6% (5,000-60,000 ppm)
5. Phosphorus (P) 30.97 H2PO4-, HPO42- 0.15-0.5% (1,500-5,000 ppm)
6. Potassium (K) 39.10 K+ 0.8-8% (8,000-80,000 ppm)
7. Calcium (Ca) 40.08 Ca2+ 0.1-6% (1,000-60,000 ppm)
8. Sulfur (S) 32.06 SO42- 0.1-1.5% (1,000-15,000 ppm)
9. Magnesium (Mg) 24.31 Mg2+ 0.05-1% (500-10,000 ppm)
Trace Elements or Micronutrients
10. Iron (Fe) 55.85 Fe2+, Fe3+ 20-600 ppm
11. Chlorine (Cl) 35.45 Cl- 10-80,000 ppm
12. Manganese (Mn) 54.94 Mn2+ 10-600 ppm
13. Zinc (Zn) 65.38 Zn2+ 10-250 ppm
14. Copper (Cu) 63.54 Cu+, Cu2+ 2-50 ppm
15. Boron (B) 10.81 BO33-, H3BO3 0.2-800 ppm
16. Molybdenum (Mo) 95.94 MoO42- 0.1-10 ppm

* Modified from Epstein (1994; ppm equivalent of concentration expressed in percent (%) is supplied). 

Note: Emanuel Epstein of the University of California- Davis  has added nickel (Ni) into the list of essential plant nutrients (Epstein 1994).

REFERENCES

  1. EPSTEIN E. 1994. Review: The anomaly of silicon in plant biology. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. 91:11-17. Retrieved Nov. 11, 2012 from  http://www.pnas.org/content/91/1/11.full.pdf.
  2. HOPKINS WG. 1999. Introduction to Plant Physiology. 2nd ed. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. p. 61-76. 
  3. MOORE R, CLARK WD, VODOPICH DS. 2003. Botany. 2nd ed. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. p. 468-495. 

(Ben G. Bareja Jan. 2013)

About Essential Elements <<<   >>> Plant Fertilization

<<< Plant Nutrition Mainpage

Want to say something?

Welcome, post it here. In English please...


Back to Home Page

Recent Articles

RSS

  1. Exceptionally Prolific Coconut Tree Shows Potential for Green Coconut

    May 12, 19 08:22 AM

    Fruit yield potential of one coconut tree highlights alternative use for young green coconut production.

    Read More

  2. Factors in Farm Site Selection

    May 02, 19 12:14 AM

    Discusses various factors to consider in both farm location and site selection with update on labor from hard-earned lesson by author.

    Read More

  3. Growing Bamboo Gets Boost: 2019 Author's Update

    Apr 25, 19 05:30 AM

    Growing bamboo is a promising crop farming venture, author declared in 2010 being convinced of its feasibility which engineered bamboo technology boosted.

    Read More

  4. Is There Plant Sex?

    Apr 06, 19 04:31 AM

    Reviews the existence of plant sex with some notes on early belief and its investigation by Camerarius in 1694, author's critical comments.

    Read More