Biology / Unit 14 Bio 3667 short lesson, about 20 seconds
The Phosphorus Cycle
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The idea
The phosphorus cycle moves phosphorus mainly through rock weathering, soil uptake, and sediment, lacking a significant atmospheric phase and so cycling more slowly than carbon or nitrogen.
In practice
Weathered phosphorus enters soil and water, is taken up by plants, and returns to sediment on a geologic timescale.
Where people slip
Unlike carbon and nitrogen, phosphorus has no atmospheric phase, making rock weathering its primary source.
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