Plants Only Use Inorganic Nitrogen

• Nitrogen is added to the soil to help plants grow healthy. Nitrate is a naturally occurring soil mineral. Plants cannot absorb pure, organic nitrogen. The nitrogen must be converted into inorganic forms of nitrate for plant use. Usually, biological microbes in the soil break organic nitrogen down into inorganic forms. Bypassing the organic process is why chemical nitrates, like ammonia nitrates, work so well in growing plants swiftly.