Linking Microbial Processes to Forest Soil Organic Matter Cycling
A special issue of Forests (ISSN 1999-4907). This special issue belongs to the section "Forest Soil".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 May 2026 | Viewed by 8
Special Issue Editors
Interests: plant–soil microbial interactions; microbial ecology; plant ecology; mycorrhiza
Interests: agricultural microbiology; soil microbiota; biochar amendment; plant–microbe interactions; sustainable agriculture; soil health and ecosystem functions; fungal and bacterial diseases; organic amendments; plant protection; plant pathogen
Interests: plant pathology; soilborne pathogens; botany; ecology; microbiology; soil organic matter dynamics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Forest soils represent one of the largest terrestrial carbon reservoirs, and their stability is strongly regulated by interactions between organic matter inputs and the soil microbiome. Microorganisms are not only decomposers but also active architects of the formation of soil organic matter (SOM), and its transformation and stabilization. Recent advances in molecular biology, stable isotope tracing, and ecosystem modeling have revealed that microbial communities mediate the balance between carbon sequestration and carbon release, thereby influencing soil fertility and climate feedbacks. In forest ecosystems, the complexity of aboveground–belowground linkages, including plant–microbe interactions, litter diversity, and environmental heterogeneity, further shape SOM dynamics. Understanding how microbial processes control SOM turnover is crucial for predicting forest resilience under drivers of global change such as warming, altered precipitation, nitrogen deposition, and land use changes. This Special Issue aims to synthesize cutting-edge research on microbial mediation of SOM in forest soils, highlighting mechanistic insights, methodological innovations, and emerging paradigms. We particularly welcome contributions that integrate microbiological, ecological, and biogeochemical approaches to bridge scales from genes to ecosystems. By advancing knowledge of microbe-mediated SOM processes, this collection seeks to inform sustainable forest management and improve projections of the global carbon cycle under future environmental scenarios.
Dr. Mohamed Idbella
Dr. Giuseppina Iacomino
Prof. Dr. Giuliano Bonanomi
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Forests is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- forest soils
- organic matter
- microbial dynamics
- carbon cycling
- soil ecology
- carbon sequestration
- biogeochemical processes
- global climate change
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