By Kirstee Schutte, Nebraska Extension Master Gardener
Healthy soil is teaming with life! There are up to 50 earthworms in a square foot of healthy soil. A teaspoon of healthy soil can contain a billion invisible bacteria, several yards of equally invisible fungal hyphae, and several thousand protozoa and dozens of nematodes. Fungal hyphae travel through soil sticking to and binding particles together to form aggregates. The bacteria produce a slime to attach themselves to things so that they aren’t washed away. The slime can trap pathogens before it reaches the root and it too helps soil particles stick together.