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Plants for Arid Lands pp 215–229Cite as

Nitrogen fixation in arid environments

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Abstract

Plants have two main natural sources of combined nitrogen, nitrate and ammonium ions. In addition, many have access to urea, from either animals or fertilizer. Although it can be absorbed and metabolised by plants, in many soils urea is hydrolysed by the enzyme urease to ammonia and carbon dioxide. Urease is one of a number of enzymes found in a more or less free state in soil, following secretion by, or death of the organisms which produced them (Nannipieri et al. 1982, Nor 1982). Nitrate, ammonium and urea form essential parts of the familiar nitrogen cycle, as does the reduction of nitrogen gas (N2, now often called dinitrogen) to ammonia. This latter process is carried out by an enzyme complex called nitrogenase which occurs only in certain prokaryotic organisms (‘primitive’ organisms lacking many of the components of cells of more advanced organisms (eukaryotes), i.e. plants, animals and fungi). Many of these nitrogen fixing prokaryotes associate more or less closely with eukaryotic organisms. The biology of the various systems has been described in recent books by Sprent (1979) and Postgate (1982). We shall be considering some examples of significance to arid zones in the next section.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biological Sciences, The University, Dundee, DD1 4HN, UK

    J. I. Sprent

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  1. J. I. Sprent
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. SEPASAT, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, UK

    G. E. Wickens

  2. ICASALS and Department of Biological Sciences, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas, USA

    J. R. Goodin

  3. Herbarium, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, UK

    D. V. Field

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© 1985 Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

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Sprent, J.I. (1985). Nitrogen fixation in arid environments. In: Wickens, G.E., Goodin, J.R., Field, D.V. (eds) Plants for Arid Lands. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-6830-4_16

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-6830-4_16

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-0-04-445330-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-011-6830-4

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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