The
Soil Biology Primer is an introduction to the living component of
soil and
how it contributes to agricultural productivity, and air and water
quality. The
Primer includes units describing the soil food web and its relationship
to soil
health, and units about bacteria, fungi, protozoa, nematodes,
arthropods, and
earthworms. It is suitable for a broad audience including farmers,
ranchers,
agricultural professionals, resource specialists, conservationists, soil
scientists, students, and educators.
Starting with The Soil Food Web, use the navigation links above to
access
the web-based version of the
Primer and additional resources. This on-line version
includes all of the text of the original,
but not all of the images of the soil organisms. The full story of the
soil food web is
more easily understood with the help of the illustrations in the printed
version.
Copyright restrictions: Many
photographs on this site cannot be used on other web sites or for
other
purposes without explicit permission from the copyright owners.
For reproduction
requests
of copyrighted (credited) images, please contact the Soil and Water
Conservation
Society at
pubs@swcs.org.
The
text, graphs, tables, photos, and graphics from USDA sources may be
used freely;
however, please credit the Soil Biology Primer or this web site. Also,
as a
courtesy, e-mail the
webmaster of this site to let us know
how you are using this
material.
Clip
art from the Primer is available for
downloading.
How to Cite the Soil Biology Primer
Citation for this web page:
Soil Biology Primer [online]. Available:
soils.usda.gov/sqi/concepts/soil_biology/biology.html
[access date].
Either of the following are correct citations for the current
edition of the booklet:
Tugel, Arlene, Ann Lewandowski, Deb Happe-vonArb, eds. 2000.
Soil Biology Primer. Rev. ed. Ankeny, Iowa: Soil and Water
Conservation Society.
Soil and Water Conservation Society (SWCS). 2000. Soil Biology
Primer. Rev. ed. Ankeny, Iowa: Soil and Water Conservation
Society.
Citation for the first edition of the booklet:
Tugel, A.J., A.M. Lewandowski, eds. 1999. Soil Biology Primer.
NRCS Soil Quality Institute, Ames, IA.
Acknowledgements
The former Soil Quality Institute of the Natural Resources
Conservation Service, with assistance from the Conservation Technology
Information Center, provided leadership for this project. The Natural
Resources Conservation Service and the Soil and Water Conservation
Society thank many individuals, including the following, for their
contributions.
Authors
Elaine R. Ingham
Andrew R. Moldenke, Oregon State University
Clive A. Edwards, The Ohio State University
Editors
Arlene J. Tugel, NRCS Soil Quality Institute
Ann M. Lewandowski, NRCS Soil Quality Institute
Deb Happe-vonArb, Soil and Water Conservation Society
Designer
DesignGroup Inc.
Illustrations
Nancy K. Marshall, Marshall Designs
Reviewers (Not all
reviewed all chapters)
Jayne Belnap, National Park Service
Edwin Berry, USDA-ARS, National Soil Tilth Lab, Ames, IA
David C. Coleman, University of Georgia
Jeff Herrick, USDA-ARS, Las Cruces, NM
Ann Kennedy, USDA-ARS, Pullman, WA
Dennis Linden, USDA-ARS,St. Paul, MN
Jean Molina, University of Minnesota
Kate Scow, University of California, Davis
>
Go To Chapter 1: The Soil Food
Web
