Plants do need CO2, but they also need water, nitrogen, and other nutrients. Others, like wheat, grow bigger but end up with less nitrogen. As a result, insects end up eating more to get the nitrogen they need. The nutritional value of food plants would be similarly reduced for other animals — including humans.

You can have too much carbon dioxide Even though plants need CO2, too much can be harmful. Plants that take in too much carbon dioxide can deteriorate when pushed to the limit during flowering cycles, and can produce fewer and smaller buds if this happens.

Plants have aerobic metabolisms. In an atmosphere of pure CO2, they would suffocate. But aerobic metabolism is so much more efficient than anaerobic that there are no multicellular organisms that don’t use oxygen. Now, plants do have very low metabolic rates compared to animals.

A Co2 level of over 2000ppm can kill your plants, and levels higher than that can become unsafe for humans and animals to breathe. Keep in mind that a quantity below 250 PPM of CO2 will harm your plants. Let’s say you have six plants growing in your dressing and there is no artificial or natural ventilation provided.

Photosynthesis removes CO2 from the atmosphere and replaces it with O2. Respiration takes O2 from the atmosphere and replaces it with CO2. However, these processes are not in balance. Not all organic matter is oxidized.

Plant mortality is not a possible effect of rising carbon dioxide levels on plants. This value is a fixed value and cannot be affected by changes in the carbon dioxide level.

If the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere increases, more carbon dioxide could enter through a smaller opening of the stomata, so more photosynthesis could occur with a given supply of water.

Elevated [CO2] increases the availability of carbon in leaves causing greater Rubisco activity and higher rates of photosynthesis. Greater photosynthesis increases the content of non-structural carbohydrates in leaves which can lead to greater starch reserves and increased auxin biosynthesis.

CO2 doesn’t do magic but if used to complement a good growing space it can increase the yields up to 30%!

Carbon dioxide concentration Carbon dioxide – with water – is one of the reactants in photosynthesis. If the concentration of carbon dioxide is increased, the rate of photosynthesis will therefore increase.

For most crops the saturation point will be reached at about 1,000–1,300 ppm under ideal circumstances. A lower level (800–1,000 ppm) is recommended for raising seedlings (tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers) as well as for lettuce production.