Study
A history of research on the link between (micro)aggregates, soil biota, and soil organic matter dynamics
Six, Johan; Bossuyt, Heleen; Degryze, Steven; Denef, Karolien
Soil and Tillage Research, 2004
Reviews how soil aggregates form and persist, and the roles of roots, fungal hyphae, microbial products, soil fauna and organic matter in binding mineral particles at different size scales.
- Studied in
- Fungi, Bacteria, Animalia
- Sample size
- review of aggregate formation and stabilisation research
Aggregation operates hierarchically: mineral particles and organic matter bind into microaggregates, which are held into macroaggregates by transient binding agents including roots and fungal hyphae. Organic matter within aggregates is physically protected from decomposition.
What it means
The authors' reading, and ours. Where they differ, that difference is the point.
How the authors put it
Aggregate structure and organic matter dynamics are mutually dependent: organic matter binds aggregates, and aggregates protect organic matter.
How NatureHQ reads it
The mechanism behind the modern account of soil carbon persistence. Carbon inside an aggregate is not chemically special; it is simply somewhere an enzyme cannot easily reach. That also explains why breaking soil apart — by tillage, by erosion — releases carbon that had been stable for decades without anything about the molecules changing.
- Aggregate hierarchy is better established in some soil types than others.
- Much of the evidence comes from agricultural soils, where disturbance regimes are unlike those of natural systems.
What this study is used for on NatureHQ
One study can inform several subjects. Here is everywhere this one is cited.
Soil carbon
Old soil carbon is not made of indestructible molecules. It persists because decomposers cannot reach it — locked in aggregates or bound to minerals. Break the soil apart and it becomes available again.
Soil
Soil is not loose particles. Minerals and organic matter bind into crumbs, held together by roots, fungal threads and microbial glues — and the carbon inside those crumbs survives because enzymes cannot reach it.
Published by: Elsevier journalsPublished in an Elsevier journal.
doi.org/10.1016/j.still.2004.03.008
Checked against Crossref on 2026-09-28, and they agree on the title, the authors and the year.
NatureHQ summarises research in its own words and does not reproduce published text. Reviewed 2026-09-04.