Tag: Symbiotic nutrition

Over 95% of all plant species are considered autotrophs, meaning they create their own food through photosynthesis. This ability, however, does not encompass the full range of nutritional strategies, as some plants have adapted alternative methods to survive in nutrient-poor environments. Understanding what type of nutrition takes place in plants reveals the incredible diversity of life and adaptation.

Remarkably, most of the life on Earth is supported by the foundational process of plants producing their own food. This leads to the fundamental question: what are the two major modes of nutrition in plants and how do they differ in sustaining life?

Over 400 million years ago, the first land plants likely formed symbiotic relationships with fungi to survive nutrient-scarce soils. Today, this fundamental concept of cooperation is crucial for understanding what is the symbiotic relationship of nutrition across a vast range of life, from human health to global ecosystems.