Question

Why can’t all minerals be passively absorbed through the roots?

(a) They are present in the soil as charged particles

(b) The concentration of minerals in the soil is very high

(c) Minerals can never be transported

(d) Roots only absorb water

I had been asked this question in unit test.

Query is from Mechanism of Absorption of Nutrients topic in division Mineral Nutrition of Biology – Class 11

Answer 1

The correct answer is (a) They are present in the soil as charged particles

For explanation: Unlike water, all minerals cannot be passively absorbed by the roots because the minerals are present in the soil as charged particles which cannot move across the cell membranes. Also, the concentration of the minerals in the soil is usually lower than the concentration of minerals in the roots.