How Does It Get Nutrients?

The rambutan is an autotrophic plant that gets its nutrients from the soil and the sun. Soil provides a plethora of nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and many more. To learn more about the more types of nutrients found in soil click here.

The sun provides the tree with the appropriate source of light to undergo photosynthesis. Photosynthesis is a process where light energy is converted into nutritious sugars the plant will use or store for later use. This process is found in the chloroplasts, which are located in the leaves, as mentioned on the Adaptations page.

To break down the process of photosynthesis, one should understand that it is a two-step process, a light reaction followed by a dark reaction. In the light reaction, sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide are taken in and converted into two energy rich chemicals called ATP (adenosine triphosphate) and NADPH. These two chemicals and the carbon dioxide are then used in the dark reaction in photosynthesis, also known as the Calvin Cycle. The Calvin Cycle takes ATP, NADPH, and carbon dioxide and makes sugar, otherwise known as glucose. Glucose is then stored or used to feed the rest of the plant. If you would like a more detailed description of photosynthesis, click here. If you would like to learn more about the Norway Spruce, another organism that gets its nutrients from photosynthesis, click here.

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