2.7.1. Nutrient Cycling

The nutrient cycle is a concept that describes how nutrients move from the physical environment to the living organisms, and subsequently recycled back to the physical environment.

This movement of nutrients from the environment into plants and animals and again back to the environment is essential for life and it is the vital function of the ecology of any region. In any particular environment, to maintain its organism in a sustained manner, the nutrient cycle must be kept balanced and stable.

Nutrient cycling is typically studied in terms of specific nutrients, with each nutrient in an environment having its own particular pattern of cycling. Among the most important nutrient cycles are the carbon nutrient cycle and the nitrogen nutrient cycle. Both of these cycles make up an essential part of the overall soil nutrient cycle. There are many other nutrient cycles that are important in ecology, including a large number of trace mineral nutrient cycles.

Nutrient cycling