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Soil microbiology is the study of microorganisms in soil, their functions, and how they affect soil properties. [1] It is believed that between two and four billion years ago, the first ancient bacteria and microorganisms came about on Earth's oceans.
Soil biology is the study of microbial and faunal activity and ecology in soil. Soil life, soil biota, soil fauna, or edaphon is a collective term that encompasses all organisms that spend a significant portion of their life cycle within a soil profile, or at the soil-litter interface.
By dominating the soil's microbial environment, effective microorganisms encourage other beneficial microbes to thrive and outcompete smaller groups of pathogenic or opportunistic microbes. This natural balancing act leads to stronger, more resilient plants and higher crop yields, positioning effective microorganisms as a key player in the ...
Soil microbial communities experience shifts in the diversity and composition during dehydration and rehydration cycles. [5] Soil moisture affects carbon cycling a phenomenon known as Birch effect. [6] [7] Temperature variations in soil are influenced by factors such as seasonality, environmental conditions, vegetation, and soil composition.
Free-living microfungi often function as decomposers, and contribute to soil microbial biomass. Many microfungi in biological soil crusts have adapted to the intense light conditions by evolving the ability to produce melanin, and are called black fungi or black yeasts. Fungal hyphae can bind soil particles together.
Soil microbial communities are characterized in many different ways. The activity of microbes can be measured by their respiration and carbon dioxide release. The cellular components of microbes can be extracted from soil and genetically profiled, or microbial biomass can be calculated by weighing the soil before and after fumigation.
Bacteria function and reproduce as individual cells, but they can often aggregate in multicellular colonies. [54] Some species such as myxobacteria can aggregate into complex swarming structures, operating as multicellular groups as part of their life cycle , [ 55 ] or form clusters in bacterial colonies such as E.coli .
The microbial communities inside the root and in the rhizosphere are distinct from each other, [2] and from the microbial communities of bulk soil, [3] although there is some overlap in species composition. Different microorganisms, both beneficial and harmful, affect the development and physiology of plants.