The soil works like a stomach, since organic matter is added to it, the natural food of the soil, which digests and makes proteins available to plants as nutrients.

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▶ In addition to protein nutrients, also amino acids and vitamins. To fulfill this function, the soil must have an active microbial flora or microfauna, which must be protected and increased by providing organic matter.

With optimal conditions, microbial life and mesofauna (bacteria, fungi, actinomycetes, yeast, protozoa, insects and nematodes), it will degrade the organic remnants and will be able to nourish the plants.

It does this through the microbial flora, which, being very small organisms (unicellular) when feeding, predigests the organic matter outside its body.

Once the nutrients are digested and dissolved, they are absorbed by the cell membrane, releasing metabolites and a large number of enzymes such as ureases, catalases, invertases, phosphatases into the soil solution.

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Which increase the enzymatic potential of the soil, which is why the soil is not more active due to the population of microorganisms, but due to the concentration of enzymes, this potential facilitates the availability and absorption of nutrients for the plant.

NOTE: Reference material.

Soil micro- and mesofauna community composition.

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