Soil is home to a large proportion of the world's biodiversity and of extreme importance for the natural ecosystem, agricultural productivity, and environmental quality. Recent scientific advancements showed how soil biology is critical for inherent soil processes. The biological complexity of soil determines functions such as nutrient cycling, nutrient retention, soil structure, infiltration, mineralization, and degradation of different organic and inorganic compounds, and disease suppression. Healthy soils with diverse functional microbial community structures effectively support plant growth, protect air and water quality, and ensure better human, animal, and ecosystem health.
Concerns over the sustainability of current agricultural practices and future food security has captured the attention towards soil biology and its importance for different agroecological processes. Rejuvenated attention and recent development in different omics technologies and computational methods have demonstrated the critical role of soil biology, especially of the microbial community, in different soil processes. A functioning soil microbiota is essential for crop productivity, nutrient balance, mineralization, soil structure enhancement, and environmental quality. However, there is a vast knowledge gap on how different agronomic practices and environmental processes alter the core functional groups of microorganisms and associated soil processes. More importantly, how to use the knowledge of soil phylogenomics to understand the critical nutrient cycling like C & N and use it to devise better agronomic management practices for sustainable agriculture and the environment.
For this research topic, we are inviting papers relevant to soil ecosystem studies, especially on diverse and dynamic soil microbiota, and their role in bio-geochemistry of nutrients. Researchers, academicians, and professionals are encouraged to contribute original research articles, reviews and mini reviews, opinions and perspectives on current development in soil biology. The specific themes for this Research Topic are, but are not limited to:
- Dynamics and diversity of soil microorganisms
- Community based biogeochemistry of soil nutrients
- Soil community interactions for sustainable "crop-soil" ecosphere
- Soil biology for Soil Health
- Dynamics in soil microbial population and innovative bioremediation
