Do you understand the role of microorganisms in soil?

There are many kinds of microorganisms in the soil, including bacteria, fungi, actinomyces, algae and protozoa. The amount is also very large, there are hundreds of millions to tens of billions of them in 1 gram of soil. Most soil microorganisms are beneficial to crop growth and development, they have a significant impact on the formation and development of soil, material circulation and fertility evolution, etc., of course, there are some unloved pathogenic microorganisms. It is with the silent cultivation of soil microorganisms that the earth will have a spring and autumn harvest. So what exactly are microbes doing in the soil?

Can form soil structure

Soil is not a simple combination of soil particles and chemical fertilizers. As an active component of soil, soil microorganisms contribute to the formation of large aggregate structures of soil particles through the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide in metabolic activities and the secretion of organic acids in their own life process, and ultimately the formation of soil in the true sense. The flora composition, biomass and life activities of soil microorganisms are closely related to the formation and development of soil.

Decomposable organic matter

For example, the residual roots and leaves of crops and the organic fertilizers applied into the soil can decompose and decompose only through the action of soil microorganisms, releasing nutrient elements for crops to use, and forming humus to improve the structure and tillability of the soil.

Then, soil microorganisms can also decompose minerals, and the metabolites of soil microorganisms can promote the dissolution of insoluble substances in the soil. For example, phosphorus bacteria can decompose phosphorus in phosphate ores, and potassium bacteria can decompose potassium in potassium ores, so as to facilitate the absorption and utilization of crops and improve soil fertility. In addition, the decomposition and utilization of urea is also inseparable from soil microorganisms. These soil microbes are like fertilizer processing plants in the soil, processing the mineral fertilizer in the soil into a form that crops can absorb and use.

It has the function of fixing nitrogen, preventing disease and promoting growth

Nitrogen accounts for 4/5 of the composition of the air, but plants can not directly use, some microorganisms can use its nitrogen fixation effect to convert nitrogen in the air into fixed nitrogen compounds that plants can use, with such soil microorganisms, it is equivalent to the soil has its own nitrogen fertilizer production workshop.

Soil microorganisms living around plant roots can also regulate plant growth. Plant symbiotic microorganisms such as rhizobia, mycorrhiza and fungi can directly provide nitrogen, phosphorus and other mineral elements for plants as well as organic acids, amino acids, vitamins, auxin and other organic nutrients to promote plant growth. Soil microorganisms are closely related to plant root nutrition.

The microbes in the soil are both mutually beneficial and hostile. For example, there are some antimicrobial microorganisms in the soil, they can secrete antibiotics, inhibit the reproduction of pathogenic microorganisms, so that the harm of pathogenic microorganisms in the soil can be prevented and reduced to crops, so the microorganisms in the soil actually have a negative side, such as pathogenic microorganisms.

Can degrade residual harmful substances

Medicine, urban sewage and factory waste are decomposed into low-harm or even harmless substances to reduce the harm of residual poison. Of course, all these functions are performed by different populations of microorganisms, and the realization of each function requires a large number of microorganisms to work together.