Chapt 



er 



13 



Microorganisms and 

 Plant Life ' 



By ROBERT L. STARKEY 



Broadly viewed, the relationships between 

 microorganisms and plant life include much of the area 

 of soil microbiology, for nearly all activities of micro- 

 organisms in soil affect plant development directly or 

 indirectly. 



Personal considerations may dictate our greater concern 

 with the relations of microorganisms to animal life than 

 to higher plants, for our environment supports a host of 

 microorganisms inhospitable to humankind. Nevertheless, 

 a strong case can be made for the view that plants are 

 so intimately associated with the welfare of the animal 

 that they are deserving of at least equal consideration. 

 Lest we become too absorbed in our own importance, let 

 it be recalled that among living things man is dependent 



1 Journal Series Paper, New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station, 

 Rutgers University, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, 

 Department of Agricultural Microbiology. 



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