The primary pre-requisites for the nature-orientated style of life around the World are the cognition of environment necessary for the existence, and unconditional assessment of causal, functional and consequential interactions between alive and inanimate natural objects. In spite of tremendous scientific-technical progress there are no principle changes in the dietary roles of mankind. Compared with a remote ancestral gleaner the human posture within the food network has abode unchanged in time and space. Man was, is and will be at the position of consumer in all-natural regularities.

The existence of any natural and cultural ecosystem as well as the origin of their functions from energy fluxes up to cybernetic control and regulation are determined by the green plant as an autotrophic producer of feed and fodder. As a result of production process carried out by plants, soil has formed in the coactions with reducers as an inseparable and synchronously functioning companion for the progress of plant activity. At that soil is acting as the provider of plant (as a fundamental for the being of ecosystem life) with water and nutrients, and immediately participating in the energy fluxes and turnover of substances. Therefore the community of plants and soils represents a congruence of all constituents in any terrestrial and some water ecosystems. Plant–soil system and ecosystem can be interpreted as synonyms.

The existence and functioning of consumers (animals and people) are inconceivable without plants and soils, inanimate part (rocks, water, etc.) looking after the alive one through the soil in the case of both conceptions used. The presence of consumers is impossible in the nature without the producers. Human society can exist in the lack of local productiveable plant–soil system only there where the active mineral wealths and/or high technologies can compensate the import of nourishment. In this way great urban settlements have been established in permafrost, desert, island, etc. conditions. But even there is impossible and unethical to disclaim the principles of nature-orientation. Electricity, nuclear, etc. energy as well as artificial feed of inorganic origin are still unknown to ensure life functions.

References

Blum, W. E. H. 1994. Sustainable land management with regard to socioeconomic and environmental soil functions – a holistic approach. In: R. C. Wood & J. Dumanski. (Eds.). Proceedings of the Internat. Workshop of Sustainable Land Management for the 21st Century. Volume 2. Plenary Papers. Agric. Institute of Canada, Ottawa, pp. 115–124.

Kitse, E. 1978. Soil Water (in Estonian). Valgus, Tallinn, 142 p.

Reintam, L. 1991. About soil energetics. In: T. Frey (Ed.). Problems of Contemporary Ecology. Ecology and Energetics. Publ. Inst. of Ecology and Marine Research, Tartu, pp. 141–145.

Reintam, L. Yu., E. Ya. Kitse & R. K. Kõlli. 1986. Genetic-productive characterization of soils on different parent material in Estonia. In: V. A. Kovda & M. A. Glasovskaya (Eds.). Advances in Soil Science. Nauka, Moscow, pp. 193–199.

Ross, J. 1976. Radiative transfer in plant communities. In: Vegetation and the Atmosphere. Vol. 1. Principles. London, pp. 13–55.

Tooming, H. 1977. Solar Radiation and Formation of Crop Yields. (in Russian). Hydromet. Publ., Leningrad, 200 p.

Tooming, H. 1984. Ecological Principles of Maximum Crops Productivity. (in Russian with English summary). Hydromet. Publ., Leningrad, 264 p.


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