Plants are a natural source of nitrous oxide even in field conditions as explained by 15N site preference.

Abstract Plants are either recognized to produce nitrous oxide (N2O) or considered as a medium to transport soil-produced N2O. To date, it is not clear whether in their habitat plants conduit N2O produced in soil or are a natural source. We aimed to understand role of plants in N2O emissions in field conditions. Therefore, rubber plants (Ficus elastica) were planted in the field; then plant and soil chambers were deployed simultaneously to collect gas samples, and 15N site preference (SP) of N2O was evaluated. The mean SP values of plant and soil emitted N2O were −20.85 ± 2.8‰ and −8.85 ± 1.08‰, respectively, and were significantly different (p