Nitrogen fixation by bacteria occurs in root nodules of nitrogen-fixing trees. This nitrogen fixer, a member of the genus Inga, is growing in a recovering tropical forest in Panama. Trees with the ...

Researchers demonstrate that the plant hormone gibberellin (GA) is essential for the formation and maturation of nitrogen-fixing root nodules in legumes and can also increase nodule size. Researchers ...

Leguminous plants engage in a mutualistic partnership with soil bacteria collectively known as rhizobia. The process begins with the exchange of chemical signals: specific flavonoids secreted by the ...

To maximize the benefits of nitrogen fixation by legumes, we need to consider their long-term benefits and how best to ...

Most major crops, such as wheat and corn, require expensive nitrogen fertilizer to flourish. But what if bacteria could help ...

Nitrogen is a critical limiting element for plant growth and production. It is a major component of chlorophyll, the most important pigment needed for photosynthesis, as well as amino acids, the key ...

Cambridge scientists have identified two crucial genetic factors needed to produce specialised root organs that can accommodate nitrogen-fixing bacteria in legumes such as peas and beans. In a ...

But these are, for the most part, isolated instances. The real botanical champions of nitrogen fixation are plants that house bacteria in subterranean nodules produced by their roots. The function of ...

A typical day for Jieshun Lin began with a long bus ride to the greenhouses. “For 10 hours each day, I would pull up plants and wash their roots, looking carefully at each individual plant. [Up to] 10 ...

From lentils to chickpeas, and even the humble baked bean, pulses are perhaps best known as an alternative, plant-based source of protein. These plants are environmental heroes: they work together ...

You may already know that nitrogen is essential for healthy plants. It's the first number listed in fertilizers, and it's the element that makes leaves deep green and stems sturdy. Nitrogen is ...

The developmental regulators that confer the identity of N-fixing root nodules belong to a transcription factor family (LSH) more commonly associated with defining the shapes of stems, flowers and ...