What is Actinomycetes?

Actinomycetes are a group of bacteria that live mainly in the soil. The clumps of actinomycetes form long, thin fibers in the soil and have an important role in the cycle of environmental carbon. The durable group of bacteria are particularly furious in surviving hard conditions and decomposing hard substances in the soil and returning their components back to the most basic structures.

found in both soil and soil, Actinomycetes grow in a similar way to mushrooms. They reproduce through disputes, which are round bodies that develop a single spring. From this spring, the bacterial body begins first undulating on the tip and then divided into segments inside the spring. The walls of the spring densify the partitions, and as soon as these sections mature, the spring is ready to produce more disputes to continue the division.

When dirt and soil are freshly dug, they release a clear, earthy odor. Most bacteria in dirt substances on their basic compounds, but Actinomycetes are responsible for the breakdown of some ofThe most difficult of these substances. Cellulose is found in the walls of plant cells and chitin for similar purpose in the cell walls of mushrooms. There are not many bacteria that can break these difficult substances, but actinomycetes are capable of under the harshest conditions.

Actinomycetes are particularly important in areas where there are many crumbling plant matters such as forests and pastures. Without their ability to participate in the break -up of plants and mushrooms, the nutrients from these dead organisms would not be restored to the soil to absorb and use living plants. Activated by high pH levels, change of nutrient levels in the soil can deactivate processes of recycling of these organisms and drastically affect the soil ecosystem. When the soil contains a low pH, not only an invisible, but other soil decompositions, sponges are activated. With this shift, the soil conditions change and may be favorable for a new set of plants,such as undesirable weeds and invasive species.

It is not unusual that the colonies of these bacteria grow around certain plants, especially species such as cliffrose and Bitterbrush. The plant and bacteria can form a symbiotic relationship where actinomycetes feed on decaying parts of the plant and convert nitrogen back into a mold that is usable by the plant.