Smart gardeners know that soil is anything but an inert substance.Healthy soil is teeming with life ― not just earthworms and insects, buta staggering multitude of bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms.When we use chemical fertilizers, we injure the microbial life thatsustains healthy plants, and thus become increasingly dependent on anarsenal of artificial substances, many of them toxic to humans as wellas other forms of life. But there is an alternative to this viciouscircle: to garden in a way that strengthens, rather than destroys, thesoil food web ― the complex world of soil-dwelling organisms whoseinteractions create a nurturing environment for plants. By eschewingjargon and overly technical language, the authors make the benefits ofcultivating the soil food web available to a wide audience, fromdevotees of organic gardening techniques to weekend gardeners who simplywant to grow healthy, vigorous plants without resorting to chemicals.