CNJ+ July 2025

Soil-plant communication: A two-way street If soil is “communicating” with plants, so, too, are plants with soil. Soil serves as the foundation for much of Earth’s biodiversity. There organisms interact with each other and with plants, serving important func tions in ecosystems. Trees, for example, are important drivers of microbial communities in the soil beneath them. Scientist Stephen Hart of the University of Cal ifornia, Merced, and colleagues discovered that giant sequoias influence the microbiota of the soil where they grow. “Most people look toward the sky when they approach California’s giant sequoias, in awe of the size of a single tree,” says Hart. “A mature sequoia’s main trunk can weigh more than 130 Volkswagen Beetles. But I look down and ask questions about the hidden half that’s below ground: the soil.” Because of the trees’ long lives and height, Hart believed sequoias would have big impacts on the soil beneath them. He was right. His team examined soils in the Merced and Mar iposa sequoia groves in Yosemite National Park and found that communities of microbes under giant sequoia trees were twice as species-rich as those beneath neighboring sugar pines. The soil in each grove ultimately comes from its geologic substrate: rocks and sediments be low. That substrate contributes to the diversity and composition of the microbial communities beneath trees, Hart says.

“We now know a lot more about how organ isms like bacteria influence human health, the so-called human microbiome. It’s likely that interactions among microorganisms are also critical for the health of other species, like the giant sequoia, the largest living thing on Earth.” Next time you visit a giant sequoia tree “look up,” Hart says, “and be amazed not only by its size and presence aboveground but look down at the soil and ponder how these magnificent trees are weaving an imprint on the unseen world be low.” With NSF support, Hart is expanding his re search to other giant sequoia groves in a range of geologic substrates. Earth’s ‘critical zone’: Where soil forms, allowing life to flourish Earth’s critical zone—the layer between the forest canopy and the base of weathered bedrock – is crucial to the planet’s functions. Here, soil forms from the breakdown of rocks, allowing life to flourish. To better understand and protect this narrow zone, NSF’s Critical Zone Collaborative Net work funds grantees who are investigating key questions: How does urbanization affect critical zone processes; how do critical zones function in semi-arid landscapes, and what role does dust play in sustaining these ecosystems; how can the health of the critical zone be restored after disturbances such as wildfires and floods; and how is sea level rise changing the coastal critical zone?

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“There’s still so much to be learned about the planet we call home,” says Rich ard Yuretich, director of the Critical Zone Collab orative Network program. “Scientists are developing systems-level models to pre dict how the critical zone is responding to natural and human-altered processes. The research is important for future decisions about how humans and the envi ronment should interact.” To find the best path for ward, scientists say, we need to listen to – and heed – sig nals in the soils. No soils, indeed no life.

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Earth’s critical zone—the layer between the forest canopy and the base of weathered bedrock – is crucial to the planet’s functions. Photo Credit: Jenny Parks

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