13 Soil Microbiomes
Soil Microbiomes
The terrestrial landscape on Earth harbors countless microbes that have major responsibilities in shaping their surrounding environment. One gram of soil can contain up to 10 billion microorganisms and consist of thousands of different species. Each ecosystem has unique soil properties that cultivate a diverse array of microbial communities, which are primarily composed of bacteria, however archaea, protists, fungi, viruses, and other microscopic organisms can be found in varying abundances too. The composition and health of the surrounding environment and its macro inhabitants are dependent on their soil borne microbial partners, and a disturbance in the balance of the soil microbiome can have far-reaching effects (Omotayo and Babalola, 2021).
Environmental and agricultural sustainability is important in a number of regards, especially maintaining biodiversity, plant and animal health, ecosystem homeostasis, and even human health. Anthropogenic effects on the climate and environment have become abundantly apparent, and it is imperative to adjust mindsets to become more environmentally conscious, not only to preserve aspects of nature, but to accommodate an increasing human population. The soil is foundational to agricultural practices, and therefore food production, and so a better understanding of various soil microbiomes could serve to benefit future applications and practices (Tosi et al., 2020). One possibility, is to become less reliant on synthetic nitrogen fertilizers for soil, and utilize symbiotic nitrogen-fixing bacteria as sources for plant nitrogen.
Microbe to Microbiome: A Paradigm Shift in the Application of Microorganisms for Sustainable Agriculture
Article by Ray et al., 2020 licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY).
Light, water and healthy soil are three essential natural resources required for agricultural productivity. Industrialization of agriculture has resulted in intensification of cropping practices using enormous amounts of chemical pesticides and fertilizers that damage these natural resources. Therefore, there is a need to embrace agriculture practices that do not depend on greater use of fertilizers and water to meet the growing demand of global food requirements. Plants and soil harbor millions of microorganisms, which collectively form a microbial community known as the microbiome. An effective microbiome can offer benefits to its host, including plant growth promotion, nutrient use efficiency, and control of pests and phytopathogens. Therefore, there is an immediate need to bring functional potential of plant-associated microbiome and its innovation into crop production. In addition to that, new scientific methodologies that can track the nutrient flux through the plant, its resident microbiome and surrounding soil, will offer new opportunities for the design of more efficient microbial consortia design. It is now increasingly acknowledged th