Ebook: Interactions in Soil: Promoting Plant Growth

This book investigates soil ecology and biodiversity for its ability to maintain a balance of beneficial organisms to support plant growth. This subject is discussed by a group of international authors in natural, agricultural and urban systems. The importance of biodiversity per se and, specifically, the feedbacks between the plant and soil biota in mediating soil function are emphasized. Examples are selected from allelopathy and invasive plant species along with the, hitherto overlooked, role of viruses in soil. The book is intended to provide a framework for a holistic understanding of the essential role of soil organisms in promoting plant growth.

Soil is a heterogeneous medium which supports more biodiversity per unit volume than any other system. This book explores how that biodiversity is translated into ecological functions supporting plant growth by providing both essential minerals for plant growth and other growth promoting factors like pathogen suppression. Interactions between plants and associated soil organisms evolve through trophic and non-trophic feedback mechanisms which are moderated by plant-plant interactions (allelopathy), invasive plant species and land use change and pollution. These factors are discussed in natural, agricultural and urban soil systems to provide a framework for a holistic understanding of soil as a dynamic living entity.