Climate changes and beneficial organisms of plants in the soil

Climate is one of the main drivers of organism growth and species distributions; thus, a changing climate has the potential to alter the composition of plant and soil communities and the interactions between them. However, very little is known about the underlying mechanisms involved and the consequences for feedbacks to climate. In particular, most studies of PSFs have examined the role of soil microbial communities, focusing on net effects of all microbes involved in influencing plant performance positively and negatively. Identifying the microbial processes that underlie changes in PSFs, such as climate change–induced alterations in the balance of pathogenic and mutualistic taxa or saprophytic microbial taxa that mediate plant nutrient supply, is challenging and requires identifying the individual contribution of the various soil biotic components to PSFs. Here, we address the responses of PSFs to climate change and their consequences for biodiversity, ecosystem functioning, and potential feedback effects to climate change.