- First Paragraph:
- Soil is the site of a huge recycling operation, whereby dead organisms and organic waste products are broken down to component parts – molecules, ions, or elements subsequently available as sources of nutrients and energy to the living soil organisms. The laborers in this operation are primarily mesofauna (insects, earthworms, and other visible soil-dwelling creatures) and microorganisms including fungi and bacteria that use the organic material as their food source - and that eventually become fodder for the next generation of recyclers.
- Publication Number:
- FS1135
- Author(s):
- Stephanie Murphy
Daniel Giménez
Loren Muldowney
Joseph Heckman
- Publisher:
- Rutgers NJAES Cooperative Extension
- Date Published:
- 3/26/2012
- Number of pages:
- 3
- Tags:
- soil; organic matter; plant nutrition; plant agriculture
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