HOW DO SOIL MICROBES INFLUENCE NUTRIENT AVAILABILITY?

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Soil is rich with biological diversity and complexity that is not immediately apparent to the un-aided eye. Without a strong microscope, you wouldn’t know that there are hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of organisms in a handful of soil. Bacteria, Archean, algae, and fungi play critical roles in the growth and well-being of plants. I like to think about these millions of microbes under our feet as workers at recycling plants, mining operations, and refineries. They all have specific jobs helping make nutrients available for plants.

lichen in soil
This fruticose lichen is a mixture of fungi and algae living in harmonious symbiosis. They are part of the soil life structure that recycles, mines and refines soils. Credit: Barret Wessel
Most soil microorganisms work in the “recycler” role. These are the decomposers that take dead plant and animal matter and break it down. If these recyclers didn’t do their job, the world would be a heap of unusable trash! Instead, recyclers use the organic matter to release the fundamental components that are used as food by plants.

The microbes that work in the recycling role use the organic carbon in the organic matter as an energy source (food). Recycling frees up nutrients like nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus that are important to plant health. The importance of these recycling microbes cannot be overstated; they turn the world’s refuse into the building blocks of life. The maintenance of plant-life would be nearly impossible without these hard-working organisms.

Grey and Tan colored soil
Microorganisms are the work horses of nutrient cycling in soils; they decompose organic matter, form mutualistic relationships with plants, and contribute to soil structure. Here, iron reduction and re-oxidation features are evidence of hard working bacteria!  The soil microorganisms that fill the “miner” role work on nearby rocks and minerals, not organic matter like the recyclers. Miner microbes make a kind of “bacterial goo” – scientifically called an “exudate”. The goo has a special pH and other key characteristics specially formulated to bind and extract nutrients like phosphorus, calcium, and potassium. All of these minerals are needed for healthy plants and good crop yields.

A specific group of these “mining” microorganisms is called mycorrhizal fungi. Mycorrhizal fungi form special symbiotic relationships with plant roots. They connect with plant roots to provide access to the freshly-released nutrients. In return, the plant roots provide the fungi with tasty, energy-rich carbon that the fungi use for growth in an otherwise desolate area of the soil environment.

The final type of microbes are the “refiners.” Refiner microbes, a class of bacteria called Rhizobia, are able to take nitrogen from the air and process it into a form usable by the plant. 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.

Generally, refiners only live in special root formations called “nodules” of legume plants. Peanuts, alfalfa, clover, beans, and lentils, are all legumes. They can all form this symbiotic relationships with Rhizobia. The legumes house the Rhizobia and provide them with energy-rich compounds for food. Due to this special symbiotic relationship, legumes make for great cover-crops in agricultural settings. The dead tissues of legumes (re-introduced to the soil for future plant use by the recyclers!) are nitrogen-rich. This nitrogen-rich plant material can provide nitrogen to the next planted crop. This means that the farmer is not required to spend as much time, money, and energy applying nitrogen fertilizers.

So how do you make your soil hospitable to these microbes that have the potential to enrich your farm or garden? In simple terms, you must “feed” the microbial communities in your soil. Recyclers use organic carbon in dead matter as an energy source. Cover crop residue, compost, or mulch are good sources of organic matter. To help the nitrogen-fixing “refiners”, plant some legumes, like clover or alfalfa,1 as a cover-crop. The Rhizobia will make the legume and surrounding soil nitrogen rich. Leave this cover crop on the soil after it dies to provide nitrogen-rich organic material, and start the cycle over!

Soil microbes play a vital role in the sustained growth of plants. They decompose and recycling nutrients bound in organic materials. They help access minerals in rocks large and small. And, they can even refine nitrogen from the air into a useful form for plants!

Answered by Caitlin Hodges, Pennsylvania State University

WATER SCARCITY AND AGRICULTURE

Water scarcity has a huge impact on food production. Without water people do not have a means of watering their crops and, therefore, to provide food for the fast growing population. According to the International Water Management Institute , agriculture, which accounts for about 70% of global water withdrawals, is constantly competing with domestic, industrial and environmental uses for a scarce water supply. In attempts to fix this ever growing problem, many have tried to form more effective methods of water management.

One such method is irrigation management. Irrigation is a method of transporting water to crops in order to maximize the amount of crops produced. Many of the irrigation systems in place do not use the water in the most efficient way. This causes more water then necessary to be used or for there not to be enough water to ensure healthy crops. According to the World Bank, irrigation management works to upgrade and maintain irrigation systems, such as groundwater irrigation, that are already in place and expands the areas of irrigation to increase the amount of crops being produced.

Another method is water management for rain fed agriculture. Rain fed agriculture is the most common method of agriculture in developing nations. According to the book, Rain fed Agriculture: Unlocking the Potential, 80% of the land farmed around the world is rainfed and it "contributes about 58% to the global food basket" (xiii). Some techniques in water management for rainfed agriculture include the use of supplemental irrigation and water harvesting techniques, such as rain catchment systems and weirs or sand dams. These techniques help provide much needed water to areas where rainfall is inconsistent. Having this water helps to increase the number and quality of the crops grown.

The Water Project works to combat this issue by helping to build water collection systems, such as weirs or sand dams . Not only do these water collection systems provide clean water for people's everyday needs, they can be used for simple irrigation and "can actually benefit crop production by raising the ground water levels… Water is collected and stored for drinking and the rest seeps into the ground and creates more fertile fields" (The Water Project).
 
Using these different methods of water management and mostly Drip irrigation technology is essential for agriculture, as the increasing population calls for an increase in food production.

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Youths in Agriculture

The number of young people between ages 15 and 24 is growing rapidly. The youth bulge is particularly pronounced in Africa and south Asia, where the youth population is expected to double in the next 30 years. As of 2012, 10 million young people in sub-Saharan Africa were entering the job market every year.

As the world population continues to grow, food production will need to increase by 60 percent to meet rising demand. Yet considering that the current global average age of farmers is over 60, the question is:  who will feed the world in the future? Hunger and undernutrition also persist, and thus the need to accelerate progress—the central goal of Compact2025, for which I serve as a Leadership Council member—is ever more critical.
There is great potential for a demographic dividend, as the young generation can serve as a powerful resource for economic development and social progress, especially in Africa. Young people hold tremendous energy and creativity to not only contribute to agriculture, but also in addressing the major challenges facing humanity – hunger, poverty, and climate change. International institutions are highlighting the issue, bringing youth to the forefront of efforts toward sustainable development.
In my latest book, A Bucket of Water, I discuss the critical role youth will play in Africa’s future. There are great opportunities for entrepreneurship along the whole agri-food value chain to meet future needs in food security and nutrition. There will be need for workers in production, storage, conservation, processing, packaging, marketing, technology innovation, and transport among many others.

Yet young people face particular barriers that often lead to skepticism about farming as a viable future. Youth and other marginalized groups do not see farming as a business, as an economic enterprise. They also lack access to financial resources or collateral that are necessary to start a business. Many also lack access to modern communication technologies that would enable the exchange of important information. Without adequate education or opportunities in rural areas, many young men and women decide to leave to urban areas or foreign countries.

How can we, the current generation, help remove the barriers youth face and help them reach their —and thereby our world’s—full potential?
The key will be to develop rural areas to encourage young men and women to remain in their communities and pursue opportunities to improve their livelihoods and obtain decent work for greater prosperity. It is essential that the rural space is provided with basic infrastructure and social services, namely roads, electricity, running water, schools, health services, and more. Building vibrant rural economies can also contribute to addressing poverty and inequality associated with rapid urbanization and relieving pressure from cities with limited capacity for migration.
In order to support youth to prosper in rural areas, we need to work on a few key aspects. First, addressing the education deficit for young people, particularly those in rural areas, is necessary to better prepare youth for future labor market demands. Vocational training and apprenticeships are needed for youth to build relevant knowledge and skills for work or create jobs for themselves. The International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA) with support from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), for example, has helped identify and train young farmers by facilitating mentorships with agricultural entrepreneurs, or agripreneurs. Secondly, supporting access to credit and financial services for youth farmers will address a major obstacle for young farmers. Banks often do not provide credit to potential farmers due to young age and perception of farming as non-viable businesses, or the lack of collateral held by the farmer. Providing financial services as well as financial literacy training can be important tools for youth farming and businesses.

In addition, access to information is crucial for farmers in the globalized era. Farmers will need better information about markets, weather, as well as opportunities to enhance their business. Platforms to disseminate information are also key for farmers to reach out to potential customers. Global Youth Innovation Network in Senegal utilizes information communication technologies (ICTs) to support rural women working in agriculture.
By supporting youth in these areas, farming can become an appealing future for young people, and developing county agriculture can become a viable business. It is vital to create an environment for future food producers to thrive and accelerate progress toward ending hunger and under nutrition.

There is a saying in Nigeria that when you go to the stream to fetch water, your bucket will be filled with water that is yours. No one can take the water that is meant for you, but first you must walk to the stream. However, walking to the stream is not always easy. African youth will need to fill their own buckets, but it is our imperative to remove the barriers that hold back the future farmers of our world.
Dr. Kanayo F. Nwanze is the Fifth President (Rtd) of International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), Special Goodwill Ambassador on Zero Hunger, Africa Region, and CGIAR System Management Board’s First Global Ambassador. He is a Leadership Council member for Compact2025. This piece also appears on the Compact2025 site and the IFPRI blog

It is with this vision that we establish the Facility for Youth Development (FAYODE) Foundation to support the development of young Africans, particularly rural youth, through mentoring, capacity building, and investment in entrepreneurial skills in a wide range of productive activities.