Teaming with Microbes: A Gardener's Guide to the Soil Food Web

Book Description

Smart gardeners know that soil is anything but an inert substance. Healthy soil is teeming with life — not just earthworms and insects, but a staggering multitude of bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms. When we use chemical fertilizers, we injure the microbial life that sustains healthy plants, and thus become increasingly dependent on an arsenal of artificial substances, many of them toxic to humans as well as other forms of life. But there is an alternative to this vicious circle: to garden in a way that strengthens, rather than destroys, the soil food web — the complex world of soil-dwelling organisms whose interactions create a nurturing environment for plants. By eschewing jargon and overly technical language, the authors make the benefits of cultivating the soil food web available to a wide audience, from devotees of organic gardening techniques to weekend gardeners who simply want to grow healthy, vigorous plants without resorting to chemicals.

Customer Reviews:

Very good book.......2007-09-30

I am a very seasoned gardener already using many of the techniques proposed by the book. However my approach was based on intuition and experience. This book explains how all fits together in a simpler and more accessible way than the Soil Microbiology treatises.
Strongly recommended for gardeners of all levels.

Learned a great deal about improving my gardens.......2007-09-18

I has astonished at how much new information this book covered. Just the section on new oxygen activated compost teas was worth the price of the book. Highly recommended. I am starting to use the teas and can't wait to see the results.

A must read for anyone who cares about the environment.......2007-07-07

As other reviewers noted this is a 5+ star book. I agree w/ their comments and really have little more to add. I think the authors are passionate about their subject, not only as shown by the book's interesting content, but the presentation of this book. They choose high quality paper (should it have been recycled???) with beautiful photos of the soil's hidden helpers. I read it in an afternoon as one would a novel and highlighted pssages as I went along for easy reference.

Easy reading and informative.......2007-06-27

I had to get this book for a botanical class I am taking. As I began to read this book I am grateful that this is the recommended text. It is pleasant to read and informative.

This book will introduce you to your soil for the very first time........2007-06-18

I've been writing on gardening subjects for 15 years, and have read a lot of what other authors write about soil, but I've never read anything like Teaming with Microbes. This book changed everything for me. I'm convinced that this is the best book ever written for non academics on soil science -- so much so that I intend to write a new book in my series of How-to-Grow World Class Giant Pumpkins II: Sequel to the Classic Book on Growing Giant Pumpkins from an entirely new viewpoint -- that in which I let the billions upon billions of microbes work for me, instead of me interfering with the optimum results. This book will make you so aware of your soil, that you will never use another pesticide or mineral fertilizer again. Mark my words: Teaming with Microbes changes everything.

Soil Microbiology, Ecology and Biochemistry, Third Edition

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Soil Microbiology and Biochemistry, Second Edition
Standard text for soil microbiology

Soil Microbiology, Ecology and Biochemistry, Third Edition

Manufacturer: Academic Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0125468075

Book Description

Now in its third edition, this classic textbook includes basic concepts and applications in agriculture, forestry, environmental science, and a new section entirely devoted to ecology. This revised and updated edition guides students through biochemical and microbial processes in soils and introduces them to microbial processes in water and sediments. Soil Microbiology, Ecology, and Biochemistry serves as an invaluable resource for students in biogeochemistry, soil microbiology, soil ecology, sustainable agriculture, and environmental amelioration.

NEW TO THIS EDITION:
* New section on Ecology integrated with biochemistry and microbiology
* Sections on exciting new methodology such as tracers, molecular analysis and computers that will allow great advances in this field
* Six new chapters: bioremediation, soil molecular biology, biodiversity, global climate change, basic physiology and ecological interpretations
* Expanded with contributions from leading soil microbiologists and agronomists on both fundamental and applied aspects of the science
* Full-color figures
* Includes a website with figures for classroom presentation use

Customer Reviews:

Soil Microbiology and Biochemistry, Second Edition.......2006-02-25

Book in very good condition when arrived, was new when purchased. Cost was a little high at 62.00 dollars. Received in a timely manner.

Standard text for soil microbiology.......2002-09-18

I was a graduate student in soils and forestry when I took a class in soil microbiology that used this text. It is essentially the gold standard for soil micro texts. It isn't overly technical, but it includes a thorough analysis of the basic concepts needed to understand most aspects of soil microbiology research and application. The book uses mostly agronomic examples, but there is enough variety of ecosystems to make it useful for those working in forestry, grasslands, and almost any type of soil. Those interested in detailed discussions of molecular microbial methods or biotechnology may be disappointed, but for the general student looking to understand what those billion microbes per teaspoon of soil are doing, this book is the best introduction out there.

Methods to Study Litter Decomposition: A Practical Guide

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Methods to Study Litter Decomposition: A Practical Guide

Manufacturer: Springer
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1402033486

Book Description

Decomposition of organic matter is a major ecosystem process involving an array of different organisms, including bacteria, fungi and invertebrates. The main objective of this book is to provide students and laboratory instructors at universities and professional ecologists with a broad range of established methods to study plant litter decomposition. Detailed protocols for direct use in the field or laboratory are presented in an easy to follow step-by-step format. A short introduction to each protocol reviews the ecological significance and principles of the technique and points to key references. Although most methods are described for freshwater ecosystems, many will work equally well in the presented or slightly modified form for studies in marine and terrestrial environments.

Impact of Arbuscular Mycorrhizas on Sustainable Agriculture and Natural Ecosystems (Advances in Life Sciences)

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Impact of Arbuscular Mycorrhizas on Sustainable Agriculture and Natural Ecosystems (Advances in Life Sciences)
S. Gianinazzi
Manufacturer: Birkhauser
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Binding: Hardcover

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Soil Microbial Ecology: Applications in Agricultural and Environmental Management (Books in Soils, Plants, and the Environment)

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Soil Microbial Ecology: Applications in Agricultural and Environmental Management (Books in Soils, Plants, and the Environment)

Manufacturer: Marcel Dekker
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Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0824787374

Tales from the Underground: A Natural History of Subterranean Life

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What's under your foot?
left me not much smarter, but deeply saddened
Underappreciated Life in the Soil
Great introduction to subterranean life
Examines unexplored terrain

Tales from the Underground: A Natural History of Subterranean Life
David W. Wolfe , and David W. Wolfe Cornell University
Manufacturer: Perseus Publishing
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ASIN: 0738201286
Release Date: 2001-05-08

Amazon.com

Step into your backyard, David Wolfe suggests at the outset of this engaging book, and push your thumb and index finger into the root zone of a patch of grass. The pinch of soil you bring up will be a world of its own: "You will likely be holding," he writes, "close to one billion individual living organisms, perhaps ten thousand distinct species of microbes, most of them not yet named, catalogued, or understood."

Scientists are only beginning to comprehend the wealth of life that lies below the earth's surface, observes Wolfe, a soil scientist at Cornell University. Apart from familiar, easily observable subterranean creatures--earthworms, say, or prairie dogs--those scientists have found there progressively tinier forms of life, from "water bears" (tardigrades) and dust mites to microbes whose existence miles below the earth's surface provides keys to the origins of life itself. Noting that the total biomass below the surface may well exceed that above it, Wolfe takes his readers on a learned tour of the subsurface biosphere, layer by layer, mile by mile. What he reports is surprising, and oddly inspiring--for, Wolfe notes, although the human footprint on the soil is deep indeed, and getting deeper, plenty of life occurs beyond our reach.

"We know more about the movement of celestial bodies than about the soil underfoot," Leonardo da Vinci observed five hundred year ago. Wolfe's book helps diminish some of our ignorance, and it is a pleasure to be educated through the course of his pages. --Gregory McNamee

Book Description

There are over one billion organisms in a pinch of soil, and many of them perform functions essential to all life on the planet. Yet we know much more about deep space than about the universe below. In Tales from the Underground, Cornell ecologist David W. Wolfe takes us on a spectacular tour of this unfamiliar subterranean world, introducing us to the bizarre creatures that live there, as well as the devoted scientists who study them.

We follow the progress of discovery from Charles Darwin's experiments with earthworms and Lewis and Clark's first encounter with prairie dogs, to the isolation of streptomycin and other antibiotics from the soil and the use of new genetic tools that are revealing an astonishingly rich ecosystem beneath our feet.

The first stop on this amazing journey takes us deep into the earth's rocky crust, where life may have begun-a world devoid of oxygen and light but safe from asteroid bombardment. The recent discovery of unusual microbes that thrive at these depths today has greatly expanded our notion of earth's biodiversity and has forced us to re-draw the evolutionary tree of life. Many scientists now believe that the total amount of biomass underground exceeds that of the surface. Home to miniscule water bears and microscopic bacteria, mole rats and burrowing owls, the underground reigns supreme.

Wolfe lifts the veil on this hidden world, revealing for the first time what makes subterranean life so unique-and so precious. Soil creatures work hard for us, producing important pharmaceuticals, recycling life's essential elements, and helping plants gather nutrients from below. But human activities could easily disrupt the delicate balance within the underground. As Wolfe so eloquently explains, the future of our species may well depend on how we manage our living soil resource.

An original, awe-inspiring journey through a strange realm, Tales of the Underground will forever alter our appreciation of the natural world around-and beneath-us.

Customer Reviews:

What's under your foot?.......2006-10-15

A great deal, says David Wolfe. It's a busy place beneath your soles, and all that activity is more important than we realise. We should learn more about what's down there as part of our learning how the Earth works. Such an education might well be important to our own survival - both as individuals and as a species. What's underfoot is fundamental in more ways than one.

David Wolfe offers a brief guidebook to that realm in this well-written and fully researched account. His credentials as a soil ecologist provide the foundation for his examination of underground life. As the title implies, there are many stories down there, in both senses of the word. At the surface fresh soil is being created as you read. Deeper down are other, sometimes bizarre tales, which can provide hints to the origins of life. They might even offer evidence of the possibility of life on other planets, particularly Mars. If we find them, will "Martians" display radical forms or habits? A tough question since the life found deep in the Earth is more bizarre than dreamt of a couple of generations ago. Life far below the surface is dominated by "extremophiles" of one kind or another. Microbes that eat petroleum. Others that never see the sun and utilise energy in entirely novel ways. Still others that endure the extreme heat and limited consumables, resulting in a reduced pace in their lifestyle. Instead of reproducing in minutes as do the E. coli in your gut, these deep microbes may take years to generate a new individual.

Those deep-living microbes may have been the beginning of all life. Once started, life remained single-celled for two billion years. However, when cells joined for survival, some interesting combinations occurred. One of the more fascinating accounts in this book tells us about fungi. We generally think of mushrooms when "fungi" is mentioned. Mushrooms, however, are but surface indicators of much greater doings beneath the surface. Fungi may have helped establish the root systems of today's land plants over 450 million years ago. Over that immense stretch of time, there developed an intricate and intimate link between nearly all the trees in any given forest, irrespective of species. The soil under the forest floor is criss-crossed with a network of fungi busy sending nutrients and chemical signals among the stands of trees. It's fungi, of course, that provide the means for plants to obtain needed nitrogen from the atmosphere to make sugars for growth.

Other fungi aren't so kindly, at least as we're concerned. In recent years, a fungus attacking potatoe crops was partly controlled because it couldn't sustain itself in the soil. A new strain, arriving from the Mexican highlands granted an asexual species the ability to sexually reproduce. That quantum step along evolution's path gave the fungus the capacity to sustain itself longer in soil. More significantly, sexual reproduction introduced variants that resist pesticide sprays. Fungi can also infect humans and other animals. Fungi commonly reproduce by ejecting spores into the air. Breathed in, they invade the body causing a variety of flu-like symptoms. While few of these are fatal, children and the elderly, as always, are particularly vulnerable. Closer understanding of soil organisms has led to the development of pharmaceuticals such as streptomycine to combat diseases of many kinds.

Wolfe doesn't restrain his tale to nearly invisible organisms. He also discusses the great soil-builder, the earthworm, the topic of Charles Darwin's final volumes. Larger-sized still, another species faces extinction due to thoughtless human greed. For generations, even city kids learned of the "danger" Prairie Dogs posed to livestock. This myth led to even the federal government fostering extermination programmes. Prairie Dog colonies, which often covered vast areas, are now reduced to a few scattered locations. But it's not the Prairie Dog facing extinction, it's the Black-footed Ferret. The rodent is the ferret's sole food source, and reduced numbers and scattered habitat [which means the ferret must cross farms and roads] have tumbled the population.

Wolfe opens his book stating that his "goals are modest" and that this isn't a comprehensive study. Rightly so, since this is but an introduction to the topic. He's given what he promised in a sprightly presentation that should pique the interest of all. That busy realm is under threat in many ways, and it's up to us to understand something of its value. Take up this book and find out why you should learn about what's under your feet. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]

left me not much smarter, but deeply saddened.......2005-08-04

All the great reviews, misled me to expect not only a very readable but also a highly informative text. I was disappointed. The book skips across the vast subject, presenting only an interesting morsel here and there. It tells you a little bit about earth worms, a little bit about extremophiles, and a little about the symbiotic relationship between plants and fungi. All that does not add up to a comprehensive picture of the ground beneath our feet. It is, and I guess the title says that too, a collection of tales, and well-told tales they are. The final one about the war of extinction against ground-dwelling creatures in the US is truelly harrowing. All in all "Tales from the Underground" did little to educate me, but a lot to make very sad about the destruction humanity is visiting on this planet. What a dumb and brutal creature man is.

Underappreciated Life in the Soil.......2005-04-03

Soil organisms seldom get their due. Despite the fact that we gain our food directly or indirectly from the soil, few people think much about what exists between the soil particles. In fact the soil is so full of living things that it could almost be considered to be alive itself. If an alien spacecraft landed on almost any soil surface on earth it would find recognizable life processes without much trouble, but then our planet may be a bit weird (at least as weird as Mars or Saturn's moon Titan!).

David W. Wolfe has presented a very readable and fascinating view of the soil and its biota in his book "Tales from the Underground." From soil microorganisms (some not so "friendly") through earthworms to prairie dogs, the reader it treated to a broad panorama of life. It is now suspected that the number of species in the soil (and even into the rocky crust) may be larger than for that on the surface. E. O. Wilson has said that if he were to have another career it would be in the ecology of the microorganisms in tropical soils, and I think he is on to something.

Sadly, there are relatively few soil biologists. Specialists in, for example, earthworms (creatures that as Darwin noted are largely responsible for the development of humus in the temperate parts of the world), are few and far between as noted by Ehrenfeld in his book "Beginning Again." Yet our crops, and thus our very life on this planet, depend on such soil-forming organisms.

I once visited a citrus grove in Florida where nearly every chlorinated hydrocarbon known to man had been used against the ever present insect pests. It was a spooky place. The soil itself could be used as a pesticide and there were, as far as I could ascertain, no ants or spiders. While I was there I heard no birds singing. All of these observations were certainly odd as in every other grove I had ever visited both ants and spiders were common and bird song could be heard periodically. The only living creatures I found were earwigs! Thousands of them existed under the leaf litter. Apparently resistant to the DDT, chlordane, toxophene, aldrin and dialdrin that had been used on the grove, they had proliferated beyond belief. Human activities such as this, as noted by Wolfe, need to be mitigated if we are to have a sustainable society. We cannot think of nature as something to conquer. His last chapter "The Good Earth" should be read by anyone who has a stake in solving the problems that may lead to our demise as a species- and that means all of us! Still Wolfe points out that we have to be "conditional optimists" to progress. Pessimistic despair will get us nowhere and "pathological optimism" has gotten us to this point. Perhaps it is a time for moderation in our thinking, while knowing that we may have to make some drastic changes in our attitudes to get anywhere! It is certainly unfortunate that several current governments are still in the "pathological optimism" mode, but then facing unpleasant facts is always hard! However, many national and international corporations, the World Bank and a number of insurance agencies are taking the threat seriously. After all they will certainly be affected by such drastic changes that may be in the offing. They cannot afford the head-in-the-sand thinking that politicians seem to need to get re-elected.

Read this book- it will change your attitude about the dirt we walk on and from which we probably originated!

Great introduction to subterranean life.......2004-12-13

_Tales from the Underground_ by David W. Wolfe is an excellent though rather brief introduction to the organisms that live underground; it is only 188 pages long, 206 if one count's the end notes and bibliography (which are quite worthwhile to at least browse). One of the things I liked about the book was that Wolfe was clearly enthusiastic about his subject and expressed a real sense of wonder for the fascinating organisms that dwell under the earth's surface.

He began the book with a nice overall introduction to the subject, more than sufficient to grab my attention. In one just pinch of soil from your backyard, you will be holding close to one billion individual living organisms, including quite a few that are not named, classified, or in any way studied, animals ranging in size from the tiniest of microbes to microscopic threads of fungal hyphae, the total length of which might be best measured in miles, not inches. In a handful of soil there are more creatures than humans currently alive. A typical square yard of soil contains billions of microscopic roundworms called nematodes, a dozen to several hundred earthworms, 100,000 to 500,000 insects and other arthropods, and staggering numbers of single-celled organisms. After reviewing some basics about soil layers and types, he went into more detail about this subterranean world.

The first chapter discussed the origins of life on earth, much of which had to do with life in the soil. The complex structure and chemistry of clay crystals may have played a vital role in the development of life, perhaps initially serving as the "infrastructure" of the first, most primitive organisms, this infrastructure eventually being discarded as more and more organic molecules such as those in amino and nucleic acids took over clay's replication and synthesis functions. According to some theorists clay made possible the very first sequencing of simple proteins and genes thanks to its unique properties.

Chapter two introduced the "extremophiles," organisms that live in hostile environments, many of which exist in subterranean conditions. Some organisms "breathe in" iron oxide (rust) as a substitute for oxygen, while others are able to incorporate cobalt and even uranium into their biological processes. Much of the chapter gave the history of the study of extremophiles, as biologists continually had to revise their notions of what life could tolerate as they found organisms living at ever higher temperatures and depths (with organism at 9,000 foot depths and at temperatures higher than 160 degrees Fahrenheit having been discovered). Of further interest, these organisms may be the most common in the world, with some calculations showing that their total biomass exceeds that of all surface life. Study of one group, lithotrophic microbes, which live buried in basalt rock deep beneath the surface, has been vital in the search for life on other planets.

Chapter three focused primarily on Dr. Carl Woese of the University of Illinois, a researcher who discovered an entire new microbial superkingdom of organisms, the Archaea, a finding that radically changed how the various kingdoms of organisms were classified, a discovery that was highly controversial, as he changed the tree of life from one based primarily on visual characteristics to one based on his molecular approach. Woese found that a number of organisms assumed to be bacteria were something entirely different, as different from bacteria at least as plants are from animals. In the end the new tree of life consists of three superkingdoms or domains, Bacteria, Archaea (which includes many extremophiles), and Eukarya (which encompasses plants, animals, fungi, and protozoa).

Chapter four emphasized the importance of "nitrogen-fixers," a small group of bacteria and archaea that are able to convert nitrogen gas in the atmosphere into a form the rest of life on earth can use, a biological innovation every bit as important as the advent of photosynthesis to the history of life on earth. Wolfe showed the rather intricate symbiosis between nitrogen-fixers and plants as well their complex biology. He also discussed the role of denitrifiers, organisms that aid in the recycling of nitrogen on earth as they are able to convert soil nitrates back into atmospheric nitrogen.

Chapter five dealt with the equally important symbiosis between plants and highly specialized underground fungi, vital in enabling plants to obtain water and nutrients from the soil (and occasionally other plants). More than 90% of the higher plants on the planet today benefit from their association with the delicate threadlike hyphae in their roots, a group known as mycorrhizal fungus. Wolfed discussed the two types, arbuscular mycorrhizae (so named because their unique branching, tree-shaped hyphal structures) and the ectomycorrhizae, both of which are the foundation of most terrestrial ecosystems.

Chapter six dealt with earthworms, much of it providing information and anecdotes about Charles Darwin's decades long study of them. Also vital to ecosystems, they act as biological blenders, fragmenting plant debris and mixing it with the soil and living and dead microbial biomass, creating more surface area for further production of humus.

The next chapter discussed some of the good and bad effects on human health of soil organisms. The passages on the soil-borne pathogen _Clostridium tetani_, the cause of tetanus, made for chilling reading. Wolfe also related information about the fungus-like _Phytopthora infestans_, which causes potato late blight, source of the 1840s potato famine in Ireland (and a disease that may be making a comeback). Soil organisms have also done a lot of good; the root fungus _Trichoderma harzianum_ targets a variety of disease-causing soil microbes, and working in the 1940s soil biologist Dr. Selman Waksman discovered a number of potent antibiotics from soil bacteria.

Chapter eight was quite interesting, dealing with the interesting life history and often tragic human history of three animals, the prairie dog, black-footed ferret, and burrowing owl.

The final chapter dealt with the primary threats to soil ecology, notably soil erosion, toxic waste, and climatic change (both acid rain and global warming).

A great introduction to subterranean life, worthwhile reading.

Examines unexplored terrain.......2002-08-08

This natural history of subterranean life examines unexplored terrain and its unique and varied habitats, from microscopic life to small water bears. Particularly intriguing are the links made between subterranean life and its potentials for assisting mankind.

Average customer rating:

Disappointed

Soil Microbiology, 2nd Edition
Robert L., III Tate
Manufacturer: Wiley
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Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0471317918

Book Description

Extensively revised, accessible, and up-to-date-the new edition of Tate's classic soil microbiology text Now in its second edition, Soil Microbiology offers students a broad knowledge of the behavior and function of microbes in soil-all the essentials they will need in order to address the long-term stewardship of the earth's soil resources. Designed for use as the core text for microbiology courses in the soil science curriculum, it explores the tremendous diversity of life found in soil ecosystems. With its amplified focus on the reclamation of contaminated and damaged soils, greenhouse gas production, and the sustainability of soil ecosystems, this book is an ideal resource for upper-level undergraduates and graduate students, as well as a useful reference for professionals in soil and environmental science. Soil Microbiology, Second Edition features:
* A focus on new advances as well as environmental science aspects of soil microbiology
* Completely new chapters on the biological diversity of soil ecosystems, soil remediation, and soil systems management
* A strong emphasis on research in real-world settings as well as theoretical concerns

Customer Reviews:

Disappointed.......2005-09-19

I placed an order (with expedited shipping) for a book that cargolargo said they had in-stock. On the date that they said I would receive it, I checked online and they had not even shipped it. I wrote them an email asking when the book would be shipped. They replied with a "sorry, we shipped your book to the wrong person" and they immediately cancelled my order!
When I emailed them as to why they are cancelling my order they replied that they didn't have any other copies available. A total WASTE of time!

Under Ground: How Creatures of Mud and Dirt Shape Our World

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Her first-person exploration reveals a teaming, vivid world underfoot
Excellent guide through the underground

Under Ground: How Creatures of Mud and Dirt Shape Our World
Yvonne Baskin , and SCOPE
Manufacturer: Island Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 1597260037

Book Description

Let's get dirty. In childhood, the back yard, the flowerbed, the beach, the mucky place where land slips into puddles, lakes, and streams are infinitely fascinating. It is a mistake to leave that "childish" fascination with mud and dirt behind. The soils of the Earth, whether underneath our feet or pressurized beneath tons of ocean water, hold life in abundance. A handful of garden dirt may harbor more species than the entire aboveground Amazon.

The robotic rovers Spirit and Opportunity made headlines as they scraped their way across the Martian landscape, searching for signs of life. But while our eyes have been turned toward the skies, teeming beneath us and largely unexplored lies what Science magazine recently called the true "final frontier." A growing array of scientists is exploring life in soils and sediments, uncovering a living world literally alien to our own senses--and yet one whose integrity turns out to be crucial to life above ground.

Yvonne Baskin takes the reader from the polar desert of Antarctica to the coastal rain forests of Canada, from the rangelands of Yellowstone National Park to the vanishing wetlands of the Mississippi River basin, from Dutch pastures to English sounds, and beyond. She introduces exotic creatures--from bacteria and fungi to microscopic nematode worms, springtails, and mud shrimp--and shows us what scientists are learning about their contribution to sustaining a green and healthy world above ground. She also explores the alarming ways in which air pollution, trawl fishing, timber cutting, introductions of invasive species, wetland destruction, and the like threaten this underground diversity and how their loss, in turn, affects our own well being.

Customer Reviews:

Her first-person exploration reveals a teaming, vivid world underfoot.......2006-01-10

Under Ground: How Creatures Of Mud And Dirt Shape Our World focuses on soil and the creatures which evolve from there to shape our lives: from worms in a Minnesota forest which are making the soil too rich for wildflowers to mud-dwelling animals on the ocean floor, and soil microbes affecting both wilderness areas and gardens. Her first-person exploration reveals a teaming, vivid world underfoot.

Excellent guide through the underground.......2005-10-11

In the unknown world under our feet uncatologued millions teem. Two-thirds of the world's biodiversity, according to Baskin (and her footnoted sources) lives underground, "the most diverse and abundant web of life known in the universe."

Baskin introduces us to a few of these creatures - nematodes earthworms, slime molds, fungi, water bears - and takes us to frozen tundra, wetlands, forests and seabeds where they live.

And she introduces us to the people who study them. People like the Wormherders of Antarctica who study nematodes (tiny worms), the most abundant animal on the planet. They study them in Antarctica because it's the one place in the world where if you change something in the soil, or remove one species, you can see the effect. Antarctica is the only place on earth where you can pick up a handful of soil and possibly not find nematodes.

Cindy Hale studies earthworms in the forests of Minnesota - a place where there aren't supposed to be any earthworms. Marine biologist Melanie Austen measures nutrient recycling on the ocean floor and the effect of fishing draggers on the tiny living recyclers. And Renata Outerbridge and Tony Trofymow show how selective tree cutting can help the loggers as well as the forest.

The creatures themselves are fascinating, not least because of the intricacy and complexity of their interaction with their crowded environment. Like the symbiotic relationship of fungi and tree roots, which involves antibiotics and decay as well as nutrient sharing, and without which, in a sever clear-cut, for instance, trees can never thrive.

These creatures are also stranger than anything we see above ground. Nematodes have a gene structure which seems to fit them for survival anywhere on earth and when conditions are inhospitable they dry themselves out and go dormant, for decades if need be. No one has yet determined the upper level of a nematode's ability to revive from a dehydrated state.

Earthworms, hermaphrodites the world over (many capable of self-fertilizing), are not always the "beneficial" creatures we think them. It wasn't until 1995 that scientists discovered earthworms are not native to forests and don't belong there. There are no native worms in the upper US and exotics, long beloved of gardeners, are disrupting the "thrifty" nutrient recycling of forests.

Baskin ("A Plague of Rats and Rubbervines: The Growing Threat of Species Invasions") accompanies each of these scientists (and more) on their rounds, showing us their work and enthusiasm as well as explaining the ecology involved as human acts start unseen chain reactions. Her writing is fair and balanced, pointing out the unknown and documenting her research with copious notes at the end of the book. Accessible and enjoyable, this is a book for ecologists and anyone curious about the world we walk on.

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The Ecology of Soil Decomposition
Sina M. Adl
Manufacturer: CABI
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Soil Science | Agricultural Sciences | Science | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0851996612

Book Description

Decomposition is an ecological process that recycles dead tissues, mainly from primary production, into nutrients in the soil. This book describes trophic interactions between species that carry out the decomposition of organic matter in the soil. The key topics addressed are functional groups, spatial stratification and succession patterns over time, involving bacteria, protists, fungi, and micro-invertebrates. Emphasis is placed on the role of the species diversity in functional groups.

Mycorrhiza Manual (Springer Lab Manuals)

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Mycorrhiza Manual (Springer Lab Manuals)

Manufacturer: Springer
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Collection & Preservation | Biological Sciences | Science | Subjects | Books

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Book Description

Mycorrhiza - symbiotic associations between plant roots and fungi - play a major role in many fundamental plant functions such as mineral nutrition or stress resistance. As the link between plants and the soil, mycorrhiza are now of great interest for developing new strategies in sustainable agriculture. Since they allow a decreased use of fertilizer and pesticides, negative impacts on the environment can be minimized. With contributions from renowned international scientists, this manual offers a great variety of practical protocols for analyzing mycorrhiza, including the latest molecular, biochemical, genetical, and physiological techniques.

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