Question: 152: The amount of biomass or organic matter produced per unit area over a time period by plants during photosynthesis is called:
(1) Secondary production
(2) Primary production
(3) Gross primary production
(4) Net primary production
Answer: Option (2)
Explanation:
Primary production refers to the rate at which plants produce biomass or organic matter through the process of photosynthesis per unit area over a given time period.
This term broadly includes all organic matter synthesized by autotrophs using solar energy.
Secondary production is the rate of formation of new biomass by consumers, not producers.
Gross primary production is the total organic matter produced during photosynthesis before accounting for respiratory losses.
Net primary production is the amount of biomass remaining after subtracting respiratory losses from gross primary production.
Therefore, the correct term for the amount of biomass produced by plants per unit area over time is primary production.