Abstract
Everyone is familiar with soil. We play on it, grow food in it, dump things on it, and occasionally become agitated when we think we might be losing it. However, any ideas of soil being simply dirt or mud are quickly dispelled when we look more closely at this material. The light microscope and the electron microscope reveal a complex arrangement of solids (sand, silt and clay particles and organic matter) and spaces (filled with air and water) as illustrated in Figure 1.1. Within the spaces live plant roots and soil organisms, an incredibly diverse world ranging from microbes to moles. All this makes soil one of the most complex and fascinating of ecosystems.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsPreview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Brady, N.C. (1990) The Nature and Properties of Soils, Macmillan, New York.
Cairns-Smith, A.G. (1985) Seven Clues to the Origin of Life, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
McLaren, R.G. and Cameron, K.C. (1990) Soil Science. An Introduction to the Properties and Management of New Zealand Soils, Oxford University Press, Auckland.
Rowell, D.L. (1994) Soil Science Methods and Applications, Longman Scientific and Technical, Harlow, UK.
Stevenson, F.J. (1982) Humus Chemistry, Genesis, Composition, Reactions, John Wiley and Sons, New York.
Stotzky, G. (1986) Influence of soil mineral colloids on metabolic processes, growth, adhesion, and ecology of microbes and viruses. In Interactions of Soil Minerals with Natural Organics and Microbes, eds. Huang P.M. and Schnitzer, M., Soil Science Society of America, Madison, pp. 305–428.
Theng, B.K.G., Tate, K.R., Sollins, P., Moris, N., Nadkarni, N. and Tate, R.L. (1989) Constituents of organic matter in temperate and tropical soils. In Dynamics of Soil Organic Matter in Tropical Ecosystems, eds. Coleman, D.C., Oades, J.M. and Uehara, G., NifTAL Project, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, pp. 5–32.
White, R.E. (1987) Introduction to the Principles and Practice of Soil Science, Blackwell Scientific Publications, Oxford.
Wild, A. (1988) Russell’s Soil Conditions and Plant Growth, Longman Scientific and Technical, Harlow.
Wild, A. (1993) Soils and the Environment: An Introduction, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1995 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Wood, M. (1995). Soil as a habitat for organisms. In: Environmental Soil Biology. Experimental and Clinical Neuroscience. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-0625-2_1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-0625-2_1
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-0-7514-0343-5
Online ISBN: 978-94-011-0625-2
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive