Understanding and Enhancing Soil Biological Health:  The Solution for Reversing Soil Degradation

Lehman, R. Michael; Cambardella, Cynthia A.; Stott, Diane E.; Acosta-Martinez, Veronica; Manter, Daniel K.; Buyer, Jeffrey S.; Maul, Jude E.; Smith, Jeffrey L.; Collins, Harold P.; Halvorson, Jonathan J.; Kremer, Robert J.; Lundgren, Jonathan G.; Ducey, Tom F.; Jin, Virginia L.; Karlen, Douglas L.

doi:10.3390/su7010988

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Understanding and Enhancing Soil Biological Health: The Solution for Reversing Soil Degradation

R. Michael Lehman

^1,*,

Cynthia A. Cambardella

²,

Diane E. Stott

³,

Veronica Acosta-Martinez

⁴,

⁵,

⁶,

⁶,

^7,†,

⁸,

Jonathan J. Halvorson

⁹

^10,‡,

¹,

¹¹,

¹² and

USDA-ARS North Central Agricultural Research Laboratory, 2923 Medary Ave., Brookings, SD 57006, USA

USDA-ARS National Laboratory for Agriculture and the Environment, 2110 University Blvd, Ames, IA 5001, USA

USDA-ARS National Soil Erosion Research Laboratory, 275 S. Russell St., West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA

⁴

USDA-ARS Wind Erosion and Water Conservation Research Laboratory, 3810 4th Street, Lubbock, TX 79417, USA

⁵

USDA-ARS Soil Plant Nutrient Research Unit, Natural Resources Research Center, 2150 Centre Ave., Bldg. D, Suite 100, Fort Collins, CO 80526-8119, USA

⁶

USDA-ARS Sustainable Agricultural Systems Laboratory, Room 124, 10300 Baltimore Ave., Bldg. 001, BARC-WEST, Beltsville, MD 20705-2350, USA

⁷

USDA-ARS Land Management and Water Conservation Research, 215 Johnson Hall, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164, USA

⁸

USDA-ARS Grassland Soil and Water Research Laboratory, Temple, TX 76502, USA

⁹

USDA-ARS Northern Great Plains Research Laboratory, 1701 10th Ave. SW, PO Box 459, Mandan, ND 58554, USA

¹⁰

USDA-ARS Cropping Systems and Water Quality Research Laboratory, 269 Agricultural Engineering Bldg., University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA

¹¹

USDA-ARS Coastal Plain Soil, Water and Plant Conservation Research Center, 2611 W. Lucas St, Florence, SC 29501, USA

¹²

USDA-ARS Agroecosystem Management Research Unit, 137 Kiem Hall, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68583, USA

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

^†

This author is deceased.

^‡

This author has retired.

Academic Editor: Marc A. Rosen

Sustainability 2015, 7(1), 988-1027; https://doi.org/10.3390/su7010988

Received: 13 November 2014 / Revised: 12 December 2014 / Accepted: 12 January 2015 / Published: 19 January 2015

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Enhancing Soil Health to Mitigate Soil Degradation)

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Abstract

Our objective is to provide an optimistic strategy for reversing soil degradation by increasing public and private research efforts to understand the role of soil biology, particularly microbiology, on the health of our world’s soils. We begin by defining soil quality/soil health (which we consider to be interchangeable terms), characterizing healthy soil resources, and relating the significance of soil health to agroecosystems and their functions. We examine how soil biology influences soil health and how biological properties and processes contribute to sustainability of agriculture and ecosystem services. We continue by examining what can be done to manipulate soil biology to: (i) increase nutrient availability for production of high yielding, high quality crops; (ii) protect crops from pests, pathogens, weeds; and (iii) manage other factors limiting production, provision of ecosystem services, and resilience to stresses like droughts. Next we look to the future by asking what needs to be known about soil biology that is not currently recognized or fully understood and how these needs could be addressed using emerging research tools. We conclude, based on our perceptions of how new knowledge regarding soil biology will help make agriculture more sustainable and productive, by recommending research emphases that should receive first priority through enhanced public and private research in order to reverse the trajectory toward global soil degradation. View Full-Text

Keywords: soil biology; sustainable agriculture; soil health; soil management; soil organic matter (SOM)

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Lehman, R.M.; Cambardella, C.A.; Stott, D.E.; Acosta-Martinez, V.; Manter, D.K.; Buyer, J.S.; Maul, J.E.; Smith, J.L.; Collins, H.P.; Halvorson, J.J.; Kremer, R.J.; Lundgren, J.G.; Ducey, T.F.; Jin, V.L.; Karlen, D.L. Understanding and Enhancing Soil Biological Health: The Solution for Reversing Soil Degradation. Sustainability 2015, 7, 988-1027. https://doi.org/10.3390/su7010988

AMA Style

Lehman RM, Cambardella CA, Stott DE, Acosta-Martinez V, Manter DK, Buyer JS, Maul JE, Smith JL, Collins HP, Halvorson JJ, Kremer RJ, Lundgren JG, Ducey TF, Jin VL, Karlen DL. Understanding and Enhancing Soil Biological Health: The Solution for Reversing Soil Degradation. Sustainability. 2015; 7(1):988-1027. https://doi.org/10.3390/su7010988

Chicago/Turabian Style

Lehman, R. M., Cynthia A. Cambardella, Diane E. Stott, Veronica Acosta-Martinez, Daniel K. Manter, Jeffrey S. Buyer, Jude E. Maul, Jeffrey L. Smith, Harold P. Collins, Jonathan J. Halvorson, Robert J. Kremer, Jonathan G. Lundgren, Tom F. Ducey, Virginia L. Jin, and Douglas L. Karlen 2015. "Understanding and Enhancing Soil Biological Health: The Solution for Reversing Soil Degradation" Sustainability 7, no. 1: 988-1027. https://doi.org/10.3390/su7010988

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