Hidden soil chemistry helps rainforests hold their nutrients despite storms

Biological and chemical processes in rainforests are essential for the way these ecosystems hold onto nutrients, yet many of the details are still unclear. One important question is what happens to nitrite, formed through the transformation of nitrate, a very reactive form of nitrogen that usually does not last long in soils. It has often been assumed that only microbes control what happens to nitrite. However, new results show that chemical reactions on their own—without the help of living...