Use of Soil Microorganisms to Improve Plant Growth and Ecosystem Sustainability

The productive capacity of soils is directly associated with their organic matter content which is the main reservoir of organic carbon and main source of nutrients for plants (Grandy et al., 2006; Studdert et al. 1997; Sisti et al., 2004; Urquiaga et al., 2004). A sustained increase in the concentration of organic carbon is needed to establish a land management system where the degradation of soil organic matter occurs slowly and consequently its quality increases. Despite being underestimated in traditional farming, the cycle of organic carbon decomposition, governs various agronomic processes that occur on the soil and appear to affect productivity (Scow, 1997).