Anchorage Daily News

Ever since "Teaming With Microbes: A Gardener's Guide to the Soil Food Web" was published, I have been searching for a guide to the critters in the soil. The limitation of the book is that there was not enough room for, nor was it the right venue to describe in any kind of detail, the myriad forms of life gardeners encounter every time they work in the soil.

The recent publication of "Life in the Soil" by James B. Nardi (University of Chicago Press) goes a long way toward filling the gap.

Nardi, a professor of biology at the University of Illinois, does an admirable job of tackling a task we couldn't in "Teaming." I believe this book will help gardeners identify the major taxa of life in their soils. Consider this column a strong recommendation to go out and get this book, not from the library but from a store. It is well worth owning. Not only did I find it a great read, but it is a reference book I will turn to often.

Nardi subtitles his book "A Guide for Naturalists and Gardeners." This is apt as "Life in the Soil" does a fantastic job of describing (often in exquisite and fascinating detail) the major players on the soil food web stage. I couldn't put it down. OK, I admit that I am a soil nerd, and naturally this kind of work would appeal to me, but honestly, each page contains so much information presented so well that all gardeners will benefit greatly from owning it.

For starters, the book is extremely well-organized. All members of the animal kingdom are represented, and each group is accompanied by a fact box that contains the scientific classification, size, common names, their place in the soil food web and their impact on gardening. If the book contained only these boxes, it would be worth it.

However, Nardi is a skilled scientific illustrator as well as a biologist. Almost every page has a detailed picture of the organisms (with size reference) he is describing, often showing not only the animal but its habitat, including those it eats or those that eat it. You will surely recognize animals you have seen before but were not able to identify.

For example, a few years back I was helping teach a compost course in Costa Rica. Wary of snakes, I did a double-take when a long, ugly leech appeared on leaves we were heaping into a layer. What was that? I wondered. In addition to poisonous snakes, was I going to have to start worrying about bloodsucking leeches too?

Thanks to Nardi, I now know better. While soils in the continental United States don't have them, soils in South America and Hawaii host these large leeches. They are indeed bloodsucking -- not human blood but rather that of worms and snails. Whew.

Speaking of worms, as a result of "Life in the Soil's" section on worms and, in particular, one of Nardi's drawings, I now have a much better handle on identifying the different families of these extremely important soil-dwelling animals, several kinds of which we have even though none are indigenous to Alaska soils.

I am sure you get the point. From the ground squirrels you see in Denali to wireworms, caterpillars and moths, flies, wasps, ants, japygids and earwigs, "Life in the Soil" will help you understand and identify the life in your soil.

Birders have their Petersons and Sibleys. There are guides to snakes, butterflies, mammals and all sorts of other natural things. Now we gardeners have a guide to the critters that make up the soil food web.

Jeff Lowenfels is a member of the Garden Writers Hall of Fame. You can reach him at www.gardenerjeff.com or by joining the "Garden Party" radio show from 10 a.m. to noon Saturdays on KBYR 700 AM.

Garden calendar

• SEED RACKS: They are sprouting up around town. Don't overdo it. Make a list before you visit stores and nurseries. The pictures on the packages are so enticing that you can easily get carried away.

• NORTHWEST FLOWER AND GARDEN SHOW: Feb. 20-24 in Seattle. Now is a great time to make reservations to get out of town to experience what I believe is the largest flower and garden show in the country.

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