After studying mineralogy in Paris, Boussingault found employment with a mining company that sent him to South America in 1821. There, he became involved in the Spanish colonies' wars of independence and, at one point, served in Simon Bolívar's (1783-1830) army. While supervising mines in Columbia, which had just won its freedom from Spain, Boussingault conducted geological and meteorological research.

Boussingault's work in South America boosted his scientific reputation. Following his return to France in 1832, he devoted himself to the study of agricultural science at his farm in northeastern France. Elected to the French Academy of Sciences in 1839, Boussingault is considered to be the founder of experimental agricultural chemistry.

One of the problems that Boussingault researched was the source of plant nitrogen. Although scientists knew that plants contain nitrogen compounds, no one was sure where the nitrogen came from. Most people believed that it was restored to...