What Happens to Organic Matter Applied to the Soil or Compost Pile?
Under suitable conditions, the organic matter is decomposed by micro-organisms such as fungi, algae, bacteria, molds, and earthworms. In the process, insoluble and unavailable (to plants) nutrients, such as nitrogen, are gradually changed into simple usable products. For example, nitrogen is converted from the unusable organic forms to a usable inorganic form through the process called nitrification. Thus, nitrification is the breakdown of protein (organic nitrogen) into ammonia and then nitrate. Some of the organic matter becomes part of the soil humus.
