What Does Calcium Do for Plants

Calcium is an essential plant nutrient. As the divalent cation (Ca2+), it is required for structural roles in the cell wall and membranes, as a counter‐cation for inorganic and organic anions in the vacuole, and as an intracellular messenger in the cytosol (Marschner, 1995).

Why do plants need calcium to grow?

The primary function of calcium in plant growth is to provide structural support to cell walls. Calcium also serves as a secondary messenger when plants are physically or biochemically stressed. … At this level, limited root system crops such as tomatoes, peppers, and cucurbite would also need additional calcium.

What happens if a plant has too much calcium?

Adding too much calcium to your soil could kill your plants because it raised the soil pH to levels that plants cannot stand.