How Do Soil Microbes Influence Nutrient Availability?

Jun 08, 2018

By Susan V. Fisk

There are hundreds of thousands—if not millions—of organisms in just a handful of soil. The Soil Science Society of America (SSSA) June 1 Soils Matter blog explains the important role of soil microbes in freeing up soil nutrients for plants.

“Soil is rich with biological diversity and complexity that is not immediately apparent to the unaided eye,” writes blogger Caitlin Hodges, Pennsylvania State University. Soil microorganisms make nutrients available for plants in three ways:

“Recyclers” break down plant and animal matter. “They turn the world’s refuse into the building blocks of life,” Hodges says. “The maintenance of plant-life would be nearly impossible without these hard-working organisms.”

“Miners” work on extracting nutrients from rocks and minerals. They excrete a substance with “a special pH and other key characteristics specially formulated to bind and extract nutrients like phosphorus, calcium, and potassium.” Plants need these minerals for healthy growth.

“Refiners” are rhizobia bacteria. “These ‘nitrogen-fixing’ bacteria take inert nitrogen gas in the atmosphere (N2 gas) and convert it to the plant-available ammonia and other nitrogen-rich organic compounds,” Hodges says.

How can you get more of these microorganisms? Using crop residue, compost, and mulch, and planting legume crops, help create a thriving environment for these vital helpers.

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Video: From Conventional to Regenerative: Will Groeneveld’s Journey Back to the Land

"You realize you've got a pretty finite number of years to do this. If you ever want to try something new, you better do it."

That mindset helped Will Groeneveld take a bold turn on his Alberta grain farm. A lifelong farmer, Will had never heard of regenerative agriculture until 2018, when he attended a seminar by Kevin Elmy that shifted his worldview. What began as curiosity quickly turned into a deep exploration of how biology—not just chemistry—shapes the health of our soils, crops and ecosystems.

In this video, Will candidly reflects on his family’s farming history, how the operation evolved from a traditional mixed farm to grain-only, and how the desire to improve the land pushed him to invite livestock back into the rotation—without owning a single cow.

Today, through creative partnerships and a commitment to the five principles of regenerative agriculture, Will is reintroducing diversity, building soil health and extending living roots in the ground for as much of the year as possible. Whether it’s through intercropping, zero tillage (which he’s practiced since the 1980s) or managing forage for visiting cattle, Will’s approach is a testament to continuous learning and a willingness to challenge old norms.

Will is a participant in the Regenerative Agriculture Lab (RAL), a social innovation process bringing together producers, researchers, retailers and others to co-create a resilient regenerative agriculture system in Alberta. His story highlights both the potential and humility required to farm with nature, not against it.