E77: How do bacteria help plants? [SJK Audio Edition]

Read this article at: https://www.sciencejournalforkids.org/articles/how-do-bacteria-help-plants/ or watch at: https://youtu.be/53P-RR4eMXQSummary: Scientists investigated bacteria that promote nitrogen fixation which could cut down on the use of fertilizers.Abstract: All plants need nitrogen to grow. Farmers use chemical fertilizers to add nitrogen to the soil. But this creates a lot of problems for the environment. So, scientists have been working on alternative ways to get nitrogen to their plants. We found a way to edit the DNA of rice plants so that they produce a compound that helps the formation of bacterial biofilms in the soil. These bacterial biofilms are very important to plants. They help them to absorb more nitrogen from the air. The edited rice plants in our experiment did grow better! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sciencejournalforkids.substack.com