https://phys.org/news/2018-05-phosphorus-nutrition-hasten-microbe-growth.html

"Life is more resourceful than we might have previously suspected," said Steven Schmidt, a professor in CU Boulder's Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology (EBIO) and a co-author of the research. "Phosphorus allows microbes to react quickly and grow in these sites."

Nitrogen and phosphorus are both essential nutrients for vegetation and microbes, but plants are slower to re-grow in dry, high-elevation sites than in wet, temperate areas. Based on classical experiments, researchers had suspected that this sluggish regeneration was primarily due to the harsh climate and the relative lack of the nitrogen, limiting the potential for organic life.