What is the soil food web?
Beneath your feet lies a vast and complex network of interactions between soil-dwelling organisms.
They’re like the underground version of a reality show – the Real Houseworms of the Soil.
These creatures, including bacteria, fungi, worm and insects, play an important role in maintaining the health and fertility of the soil.
The term soil food web to describe the way we look after the soil and plants look after us was coined by soil microbiologist Elaine Ingham in the 1980s.
If you’re interested in unpicking what’s so great about soil and how to keep your plants healthy, you’ll need a high-quality microscope, we often get asked Which is the best microscope for soil analysis? our recommendation is the Optico’s XSZ-107T Soil Biology Microscope Bundle – that is specifically designed for soil biology.
Minimum requirements
According to Ingham, the minimum requirements of a soil inspection microscope consist of the following:
- Binocular, 10x, widefield eyepieces
- 4x, 10x, and 40x objective lenses
- Abbe condenser with 1.25NA (numerical aperture)
- Mechanical stage
- High intensity LED or halogen lighting
Optico XSZ-107T
However, Optico’s XSZ-107T goes above and beyond the minimum requirements with its trinocular head and an extra 20x objective.
The trinocular scope includes 2 eyepieces and a place to mount a camera, allowing you to view soil organisms through the eyepiece while broadcasting the vision to a computer and taking photos or video. This feature is an excellent option for recording and sharing information about your soil samples, or for seeking input from other experts in the field.
The XSZ-107T Trinocular Biological Microscope also comes with 4 objective lenses – the extra objective is a 20x, considered by some soil biologists to be the ideal magnification.
It also includes a double layer mechanical stage, an Abbe NA1.25 condenser with an iris diaphragm, and a coaxial coarse and fine focusing system. Plus, with 1W S-LED illumination and adjustable brightness, you’ll have plenty of light to see what you’re studying.
If you’re ready to jump right in, check out Optico’s bundle option for the XSZ-107T, which includes the microscope, a digital camera, an eyepiece tube C-mount adapter, and a soil testing kit. With included slides and coverslips, you'll be able to start your soil biology journey as soon as you open the box.
With its simple setup and user-friendly design, the XSZ is a great choice for those who want to examine their soil food web in greater detail. So why wait? Your plants (and the rest of the planet) will thank you.
For further reading on the subject of viewing soil biology in a compost tea please read our blog post What is the best microscope for viewing soil biology in a compost tea?