Why is growth rate slower in sterilized soil?
1 Answer
This is because sterilized soil is free of bacteria
Explanation:
Certain prokaryotic nitrogen fixing bacteria are found in the soil which convert atmospheric nitrogen which the plants cannot use to ammonia, nitrates and nitrites which the plants can use to grow faster.
But, in sterilized soil, there are no such bacteria.So, the atmospheric nitrogen takes a long time to diffuse into the soil which causes slow growth rate.