Abstract

Nitrogen (N) is a critical macronutrient that influences various physiological, molecular, and metabolic processes in plants, playing a critical role in determining plant growth, crop yield, and environmental sustainability (O’Brien et al., 2016; The et al., 2021). However, excessive or inefficient use of nitrogen fertilizers has raised concerns regarding environmental degradation, including soil acidification and nitrogen leaching (Qasim et al., 2020; Dimkpa et al., 2020). This is especially pertinent as global demand for crop productivity continues to rise in conjunction with increased environmental stressors, both biotic and abiotic, driven by climate change (Coskun et al., 2017). This Research Topic brings together a collection of studies from molecular and physiological responses of either crops or model plants to large-scale agroecological solutions, reflecting the multidimensional efforts to optimize nitrogen use for both crop productivity and environmental sustainability.