# Does lightning make the grass grow faster?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-lightning-make-the-grass-grow-faster/304572>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [May 19, 2005, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-lightning-make-the-grass-grow-faster/304572 "2005-05-19T12:55:19Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![dlgreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c57346/32.png) [@dlgreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dlgreen)\
**Post date:** [May 19, 2005, 12:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-lightning-make-the-grass-grow-faster/304572/1 "2005-05-19T12:55:19Z")

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One of my co-workers just told me that grass grows faster after a lightning storm…moreso than after a rain storm. He said something about nitrogen increasing after a lightning storm. However, I think this is a major load since a significant amount of the atmosphere is N2 and to my knowledge the only side effect from lighting is O3 (ozone). And I can’t really see a lightning strike increasing the N2 in the ground. Which one of us is right? And if the Nitrogen is increased how does it work?

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**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\
**Post date:** [May 19, 2005, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-lightning-make-the-grass-grow-faster/304572/2 "2005-05-19T13:00:10Z")

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Lightning does fix nitrogen by producing small amounts of ammonia, but it’s really not all that significant. What makes the grass grow faster after a storm is the accompanying rain.

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**Author:** ![Grey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b782af/32.png) [@Grey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grey)\
**Post date:** [May 19, 2005, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-lightning-make-the-grass-grow-faster/304572/3 "2005-05-19T13:01:08Z")

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From [here](http://www.elmhurst.edu/~chm/onlcourse/chm110/outlines/nitrogencycle.html)

> [@](#):
>
> Two nitrogen oxides are found in the air as a result of interactions with oxygen. Nitrogen will only react with oxygen in the presence of high temperatures and pressures found near lightning bolts and in combustion reactions in power plants or internal combustion engines. Nitric oxide, NO, and nitrogen dioxide, NO2, are formed under these conditions. Eventually nitrogen dioxide may react with water in rain to form nitric acid, HNO3. The nitrates thus formed may be utilized by plants as a nutrient.

Though I have my doubts as to it making the grass grow faster right off the bat.

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**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\
**Post date:** [May 19, 2005, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-lightning-make-the-grass-grow-faster/304572/4 "2005-05-19T13:38:48Z")

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> [@Mangetout](#):
>
> Lightning does fix nitrogen by producing small amounts of ammonia, but it’s really not all that significant.

I think lightning accounts for about 10% of annual nitrate production, so it’s not _in_significant either.

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**Author:** ![Coolrules](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9dc877/32.png) [@Coolrules](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coolrules)\
**Post date:** [March 3, 2011, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/does-lightning-make-the-grass-grow-faster/304572/5 "2011-03-03T01:45:03Z")

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:smack: I thought the grass grows faster right before the storm