Soil organic matter

Soil organic matter (SOM) is the organic matter component of soil, consisting of plant and animal residues at various stages of decomposition, cells and tissues of soil organisms, and substances synthesized by soil organisms. SOM exerts numerous positive effects on soil physical and chemical properties, as well as the soil's capacity to provide regulatory ecosystem services. Particularly, the presence of SOM is regarded as being critical for soil functions and soil quality. Soil organic matter (SOM) is the organic matter component of soil, consisting of plant and animal residues at various stages of decomposition, cells and tissues of soil organisms, and substances synthesized by soil organisms. SOM exerts numerous positive effects on soil physical and chemical properties, as well as the soil's capacity to provide regulatory ecosystem services. Particularly, the presence of SOM is regarded as being critical for soil functions and soil quality. The positive impacts of SOM result from a number of complex, interactive edaphic factors; a non-exhaustive list of SOM's effects on soil functioning includes improvements related to soil structure, aggregation, water retention, soil biodiversity, absorption and retention of pollutants, buffering capacity, and the cycling and storage of plant nutrients. SOM increases soil fertility by providing cation exchange sites and acting as reserve of plant nutrients, especially nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and sulfur (S), along with micronutrients, which are slowly released upon SOM mineralization. As such, there is a significant correlation between SOM content and soil fertility. SOM also acts as a major sink and source of soil carbon (C). Although the C content of SOM is known to vary considerably, SOM is typically estimated to contain 58% C, and the terms 'soil organic carbon' (SOC) and SOM are often used interchangeably, with measured SOC content often serving as a proxy for SOM. Soil represents one of the largest C sinks on the planet and plays a major role in the global carbon cycle. Therefore, SOM/SOC dynamics and the capacity of soils to provide the ecosystem service of carbon sequestration through SOM management have received considerable attention in recent years. The concentration of SOM in soils generally ranges from 1% to 6% of the total topsoil mass for most upland soils. Soils whose upper horizons consist of less than 1% organic matter are mostly limited to desert areas, while the SOM content of soils in low-lying, wet areas can be as high as 90%. Soils containing 12–18% SOC are generally classified as organic soils. It can be divided into three general pools: living biomass of microorganisms, fresh and partially decomposed residues, and humus: the well-decomposed organic material. Surface plant litter is generally not included as part of soil organic matter. The primary source of organic matter contained in soil is vegetal. In forest or prairies, as well as agricultural fields, dead plants are transformed by different kinds of living organisms. This process involves several steps, the first being mostly mechanical, and becoming more chemical as it progresses. The small living beings that work on that decomposition chain are themselves part of the soil organic matter, and form a food web of organisms that prey upon each other and are preyed upon. There are also other animals that consume living vegetal material, whose residues are passed to the soil. The products from the living organisms metabolism are the secondary sources of soil organic matter that also includes the corpses of these organisms. Some animals, like earthworms, ants and centipedes contribute to both vertical and horizontal translocation of organic material. Additional sources of soil organic matter include plant root exudates and charcoal. The water content of most plant residues is in the range of 60% to 90%. The dry matter consists of complex organic material composed mainly of carbon, oxygen and hydrogen. Although these three elements make up about 92% of the dry weight of the organic material in soils, there are other elements that are of great importance for the nutrition of plants. They include nitrogen, sulfur, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium and a range of micronutrients.