Adding biology to the soil. Germs and worms, a photo primer

The major role of soil biology is to decompose organic materials in the root zone mix (or soil), including the cells of their recently dead microbial colleagues. It is precisely this turnover of root tissues and microbial cells that releases organically bound N and P as plant available, inorganic ("mineral") forms. This so called mineralization process is the essence of what soil microbial activity is all about. Yes, they do bring about other important processes, some beneficial and some detrimental, but their primary benefit is to decompose organic materials, make more microbial cells and synthesize some soil organic matter (humus) along the way.

Being that they're microscopic, we don't often get to see what microbes look like. But they are amazingly diverse and beautiful. In one gram of compost tea, there are billions of individuals and thousands of different species present.

Nematodes are microscopic worms. They can be very beautiful.

Below are pics of red wiggler compost worms. They're different from earthworms in that they're surface crawlers. They live in the area between the soil surface and organic materials covering the soil. If you want to grow microbes to add to your soil, vermicomposting  with red worms is the best way to do it.