U.S. Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS) research microbiologist Michael Lehman takes a soil-core sample on David Gillen’s South Dakota farm. Among other things, such samples can be tested for the diversity and activity of soil bacteria, fungi, algae and other microorganisms. (Photos courtesy of USDA-ARS.) Space may be the final frontier, but soil biology is the next frontier. Researchers are only beginning to understand the richness, diversity and complexity of the bacteria, fungi, algae and other microbes thriving in the ground underfoot, and just how critical soil health is when it comes to keeping the Earth’s overall ecosystem intact. […]