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Dieren en planten

Water en land

Mens en Milieu

Matter and materials   Nutrients   Phosphoric compounds   Nitrogen compounds   Silicon compounds   
Bag of artificial fertilizer, Ecomare

Nutrients

Phosphorus, nitrogen, potassium and silicon compounds are nutrients. They are building materials for plants and animals. Plants use them to make proteins for growth. Animals get these nutrients via the proteins from the plants that they eat. The farmer uses nutrients to increase the yield in his fields. Excess in nutrients seep into the groundwater and can end up in nature areas. Wild vegetation does not profit from a higher yield.

  • Concentrations in the winter

    In the winter, it is cold and there is too little light for algae growth. Therefore, the concentrations of nutrients in the winter are higher than in the summer. In the summer and in the autumn, there are periods in which the algae have completely exhausted the nutrients. When it turns colder and there is less light in the autumn, most of the algae die and the organic materials are converted into nutrients.