Ever spot an earthworm wriggling in the soil? A new study has found that they actually pull a lot of weight down there, especially when it comes to keeping plants and crops healthy, Natural Science News reported.
Researchers at Nankai University in China put earthworms to the test, using tomato plants growing in soil contaminated by microplastics. They discovered that the plants grew better despite the pollution and even had stronger defenses against plant-eating bugs, according to the outlet.
The findings are a game-changer for agriculture. Farmers and gardeners alike can look for new ways to strengthen their soil structures against the harms of plastic pollution and crop pests, all without using harmful fertilizers or pesticides.
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It's all possible thanks to what worms actually do under the ground: eat, excrete, and wiggle around. Their diet adds nutrients back into the soil and conditions it to be more fertile, while the tunnels they dig bring oxygen underground, drain water easier, and create space for roots to spread, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
In the researchers' case, the plants with earthworm assistance were observed to have higher levels of silicon, lignin, chlorogenic acid, and phytohormones — all critical ingredients for solid plant structure and defense mechanisms.
The worms also promoted the plants' antioxidant metabolisms, making them further resilient and non-reactive to changes in their environment, Natural Science News reported.
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The researchers hope the promising findings will encourage additional investigations into how soil organisms interact across levels of the food chain, per the outlet.
With global temperatures rising and food demand around the world increasing too, certain staples are becoming less viable. That means crops possessing resilient qualities are becoming all the more essential. Some can even be genetically encouraged to be their strongest selves.
Plus, with a little help from their friends underfoot, the next generation of crop plants can be grown to last.
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