plants and small animals forming a web of biological activity. Soil is by far the most biologically diverse part of Earth. The soil food web includes beetles, springtails, mites, worms, spiders, ants, nematodes, fungi, bacteria, and other organisms. These organisms improve the entry and storage of water, resistance to erosion, plant nutrition,

Our ultimate goal is the optimization of pest management by exploring more sustainable The mixed type of production system provides plant diversity, 

Soil animal communities are composed of a rich assemblage of decomposers, predators, and plant pests. As assistant professor of Soil Arthropod Ecology and Turfgrass Entomology, I am interested in improving our basic knowledge of soil invertebrates and applying this knowledge to help minimize damage by root-feeding pests while simultaneously preserving the biodiversity and function of

arthropod communities using a large-scale factorial field experiment. The study to soil erosion, due to soil disturbance, for example ploughing on with higher plant diversity; and microarthropod diversity and total abundance are likely positively affected by AES management.

Needleman describes soil composition using five ingredients: minerals, soil organic matter, living organisms, gas, and water. He also describes them as natural bodies that differ in visual appearance (colors, horizons, and layers), availability of plant nutrients, and ecosystem services and benefits. O'Geen, A. T. 2012.

Impacts of belowground insecticide application on plant performance and changes in plant community structure almost uniformly have been ascribed to reduced belowground herbivory, although recent studies reported distinct side effects on detritivore soil animals, particularly on Collembola. Consequently, it remains controversial if the resulting soil feedbacks on plants are due to alterations in

ABSTRACT Because a diversity of resources should support a diversity of consumers, most models predict that increasing plant diversity increases animal 

In terms of species richness, arthropods may represent as much as 85% of the soil fauna. They comprise a large proportion of the meso- and macrofauna of the soil. Within the litter/soil system, five groups are chiefly represented: Isopoda, Myriapoda, Insecta, Acari, and Collembola, the latter two being by far the most abundant and diverse. Arthropods function on two of the three broad levels

soil depend on plant residues, roots, and soil OM for the carbon to live and carry on various beneficial functions below ground. A large amount of soil OM is an indicator of a properly functioning ecosystem. If topsoil (the top seven inches) has 3 percent organic matter, it

Surface erosion by wind or gravity can also increase when ground cover, surface litter, and/or duff protecting the mineral soil are removed. For this reason, re-establishment of ground cover naturally or by seeding is the most effective erosion control following fire.

Japan and China in the early 1900s for soil erosion control and as livestock feed (Miller 2003). It can now been found along the eastern part of the United States from New York in the north to Texas in the south. Kudzu grows well under a wide range of conditions and in most types of soil. It colonizes sites by seeds dispersed by animals