The Law of the Minimum (Liebig's Law)

The Law of the Minimum, proposed by Justus von Liebig, states that the growth or health of a plant (or organism) is limited by the single environmental factor in the shortest supply, even if all other conditions are optimal. For example, if a plant needs nitrogen, phosphorus, and water, but nitrogen is scarce, the plant's growth will be constrained by the lack of nitrogen, regardless of how abundant the other resources are. Once the limiting factor is improved, growth can proceed until a new limiting factor emerges. This concept highlights the importance of balanced resource availability for optimal development.