noun
- a type of bacteria that lives in the root nodules of leguminous plants and converts atmospheric nitrogen into compounds the plant can use
Usage: biology
Examples
- Rhizobium bacteria form a symbiotic relationship with bean plants.
- The farmer inoculated the soybean seeds with rhizobium to improve nitrogen fixation.
- Scientists study rhizobium to understand how plants obtain nitrogen from the air.
- Clover roots contain nodules filled with rhizobium bacteria.
- Agricultural researchers are developing new strains of rhizobium for better crop yields.
- The rhizobium in the soil helps reduce the need for nitrogen fertilizers.