by Matteo Cavallito<\/p>\n
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Adding calcium to soil contributes to increased organic matter and carbon sequestration<\/strong>. This is claimed by scientists from Cornell and Purdue University in a study<\/a> conducted at the Canadian Light Source, a research laboratory at the University of Saskatchewan<\/strong>, Canada. Researchers, in particular, have discovered a previously unknown mechanism.<\/p>\n “We showed that by adding calcium to soil, we changed the community of microbes in the soil and the way they process organic matter,” explained Itamar Shabtai<\/strong>, assistant professor of science at the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station and lead author of the investigation in a statement<\/a> released by the laboratory. Microorganisms, in particular, reportedly acted more efficiently: “they processed it in a more efficient manner \u2013 more carbon was retained in the soil and less was lost to the atmosphere as CO2.”<\/p>\n