Describe the nitrogen cycle - KCSE Biology Essays

This is the cycling of nitrogen and its compounds in nature;

Plants absorb nitrogen in form of nitrates and then assimilate it into plant proteins; animals obtain this nitrogen in plant proteins through feeding on plants;

When the animals die and decompose, they release the nitrogen in form of ammonia to the soil; free atmospheric nitrogen is converted into nitrates through a process known as nitrogen fixation; the process occurs in two ways: Biological and nonbiological;

Biological fixation of nitrogen is done by nitrogen-fixing bacteria; which are either free-living or symbiotic; symbiotic bacteria are of the genus Rhizobium; and are found in root nodules of legumes (such as pea, clover and alfalfa); the bacteria convert atmospheric nitrogen into ammonia; that is used directly by the leguminous plants to form nitrogen containing organic compounds (amino acids, nucleic acids, proteins);

When plants die, the nodules release ammonium compounds into the soil; which are then converted to nitrites; by nitrifying bacteria of genus Nitrosomonas and Nitrococcus (nitrite bacteria) and then to nitrates by Nitrobacter (nitrate) bacteria; free-living micro-organisms that fix nitrogen include putrefying/saprophytic bacteria; (such as Azobacter spp, Clostridium and some algae such as Anabaena, Chlorella and Nostoc);

The organisms fix nitrogen into ammonia by break down of protein material in dead organisms; the ammonia is converted to nitrites; then to nitrates; However, denitrifying
bacteria (e.g. Pseudomonas denitrificans and Thiobacillus denitrificans); break down/reduce nitrates to nitrites, ammonium compounds and even gaseous nitrogen; a process known as denitrification; the process helps to release free nitrogen into the air for recycling; nonbiological nitrogen fixing is carried out by lightning during thunderstorms; the lightning energy, causes atmospheric nitrogen and oxygen to combine forming oxides of nitrogen; which dissolve in rain water to form nitrous acid/nitric acid; that is washed down into the soil; the nitric acid formed reacts with other chemical compounds dissolved in soil water; to form nitrates; the nitrates are then utilized by plants;