What tests to order

Microarthropods

NOTE: The microarthropod assay is under development, and is not yet available.

This test provides information on the numbers and identification to major groups of the visible soil critters. The important groups are the fungal-feeding, herbivore, and predatory microarthropods.

Generally, soils disturbed by plowing, disking, chiseling, etc will have not significant microarthropod populations for a year or more unless mulch is placed on the soil surface. Still, many predators of pests are microarthropods, and you would want to know if you have these important bio-control organisms present in your soil.

Roughly speaking there are two distinct aspects to studying arthropods in the soil. The first, and most fundamental, is the interrelationship between the most abundant and diverse elements within the soil itself. Since these are true soil-dwellers, they are usually small and inconvenient to see with the naked eye. The principal role of these creatures, (to make a long story short), is to recycle nutrients and make them available for plants. These micro-arthropods may be extracted from a soil core. See: Soil Health and Arthropods.

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