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This changes the way researchers look at this problem. Now, for the first time, researchers at MSU and the Carnegie Institution for Science have found evidence that plant roots stop growing before any iron accumulation is seen. Previous research supported the idea that iron toxicity caused a plant’s roots to stop growing. When soil doesn’t contain enough phosphorus, plants will take up more iron from the soil, which becomes toxic at increased levels. “Ideally, we would like to be able to use less phosphorus in the soil to grow plants.” “Once the world’s supply is used up, we can’t make more phosphorus,” said Hatem Rouached, an assistant professor in Michigan State University’s College of Agriculture and Natural Resources and a member of the Plant Resilience Institute.
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Phosphorus is a natural mineral that is essential for plant growth and development, and Earth’s agricultural-grade phosphorus reserves are expected to be depleted in 50 to 100 years.
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