Iron oxide in soil performs the same transformation as plants and microbes that are known to secrete enzymes to transform organic phosphorus into bioavailable inorganic phosphorus. Northwestern ...

Scientists know iron oxide minerals store large amounts of carbon in soils, but lack a detailed, quantitative understanding of the specific chemical mechanisms that allow them to bind such a wide ...

From a thermodynamic point of view, soil matter should easily turn over, but minerals can remain in soils for many years due to the complex and reactive interactions between the minerals, plants and ...

Phosphorus is an essential soil nutrient plants need to thrive.

The Earth's land surface is dominated by sloping landscapes. Every year, soil erosion laterally distributes on the order of 75 Gt of topsoil (Berhe et al. 2007). The coupled biogeochemical cycles of ...

When it comes to gardening, the term 'soil' gets tossed around liberally, but there's actually a big difference between ...

We all know about the carbon in Earth’s atmosphere, and probably about the carbon contained in plants and the bodies of animals. But a substantial fraction of the carbon in the planet’s land-based ...

When it comes to adding carbon to the soil, all cover crops don't perform equally, according to a team of researchers whose new study revealed the disparity for the first time. The research, a ...

Northwestern University-led researchers have discovered a new way that nature cycles phosphorus, a finding that uncovers a missing piece of Earth’s puzzling phosphorus cycle. The research will be ...