Mycorrhizal and Protozoan Health

Rocks — The Refuge of the Mircoworld.

An often dismissed component in plant health is the comparative distribution of rocks to plants in a given landscape. The sight beneath a rock is quite predictable to those who have ever been outside. The soil is moist and dark with a possible biological makeup of various arthropods such as arachnids, crustacean, and insects. On even a smaller and possibly more important measure is the composition of protozoa, bacteria, and fungi.

Basic Soil Composition

One of the most important biological forms in soil is mycorrhiza, a critical fungal organism that allows for plants to efficiently uptake nutrients through its roots. The literary research on mycorrhiza is endless and is a known friend to any botanical ecosystem. In brief, mycorrhizal development flourishes in shaded damp areas, hence another reason rocks are so important. Furthermore soil nitrogen cycles are largely powered by nitrogen-based byproducts of protozoa feeding on bacteria. Plants are able to fixate nitrogen and carbon to organic compounds, specifically glucose. In this fixation process, plants can bind carbon molecules from nitrogen to create glucose which is then opens the gates for the plant’s phloem to transport through the rest of the plant for energy. Woah…