Decay Sucking Up Nitrogen

Microorganisms consume a lot of nitrogen and little oxygen when decomposing plant remnants. That is why when a piece of wood decays inside a soil, the nitrogen content around it is dramatically reduced. This can cause plants growing nearby to wilt or die due to the reduced nitrogen content in the soil that has been transferred to the microorganisms that are decaying the wood. It is thus advisable not to include a lot of brown (wood) decaying material next to new plants in order not to deprive them from the nitrogen content present in the soil.

Nitrogen and CO2

It is interesting to know that not all plants convert CO2 into carbon in the same way. Nitrogen seems to help in assisting plants to make use of CO2 while at the same time making the plant able to loose CO2 as if nitrogen helps the plant to breath. It would be nice to look for the ultimate conditions and resources that a plant needs in order to develop and grow. This would be wonderful for food production and creating food forests.