BORON (B) 10.81 Atomic weight

(Micro Nutrient)

Boron constitutes 0.001% of the earth’s crust, and is necessary for the growth of land plants, and indirectly essential for animal life.  Boron is taken up by plants as borate.  It functions in plants in the differentiation of meristem cells.  It aids in the use and regulation of other elements, and in the production of sugar and carbohydrates.  It is essential for seed and fruit development.  It is not considered a poison, but excessive amounts tend to act as an unselective herbicide.  With Boron deficiency, cells may continue to divide but structural components are not differentiated.  “Brown Heart” and “Dry Rot” are among the disorders due to Boron deficiency.  Boron is non-mobile in plants, and a constant supply is necessary at all growing points.  Deficiency is first found in the youngest tissues of the plant.

CHLORINE (Cl) 35.45 Atomic weight

(Micro Nutrient)

Chlorine, as a chloride is essential to all life.  Chlorine constitutes about 0.013% 0f the earth’s crust.  It makes up 1.9% of sea water by weight.  Free chlorine is a minor constituent of volcanic gas.  In plants, it aids in metabolism as it is required in the photosynthetic reaction of plants.  Deficiency is not seen in the field due to its universal presence in nature.  Chlorine is necessary for the growth of higher plants but other halides, such as bromine, may be a substitute at higher concentrations.  The chloride ion is present in body fluids of higher animals and in the digestive secretions of the stomach.

COBALT (Co) 58.93 Atomic Weight

(Micro Nutrient)

Cobalt, though widely dispersed, constitutes 0.001% of the earth’s crust.  It is present in small quantities in the sun and stellar atmospheres.  It occurs naturally in many elemental compounds, and is found in natural waters, plants, and animals.  Cobalt is an essential trace element, as part of vitamin B-12, in the formation of red blood cells.  In plants, Cobalt has recently been shown to be required by legumes when fixing nitrogen, but not when fixed nitrogen is present.  Cobalt in small amounts has been found to be effective in correcting mineral deficiencies in some animals, and it aids in the growth process of root development in the soils.  As with most trace elements, excessive amounts can be toxic or carcinogenic.

COPPER (Cu) 63.54 Atomic weight

(Micro Nutrient)

Copper is a trace element found both in its free state, and in mineral compounds.  It is present in seaweeds, sea corals, the human liver, and many mollusks and anthropods.  In humans, it helps catalyze hemoglobin formation.  In the sulfate form, Copper is an activator of several enzymes in plants, and it plays a role in Vitamin A production.  Vitamin A deficiency interferes with protein syntheses and subsequent reproductive growth.  It aids in root metabolism.   Plant uptake is in the form of ions (Cu+, Cu++).