Fungal:Bacterial Ratio

AUS-TGP-AGR-SFB General Moderate confidence

Benchmark Value

0.3 index
Thresholds: Lower: 0.3, Upper: —
Direction: Higher is desirable ↑
Form: LowerThreshold

Scoring Curve

Scoring curve unavailable

The scoring engine could not generate a curve for this benchmark context. The primary form is CompositeFramework, but the benchmark data may be missing required fields (e.g., optimal range bounds for an OptimalRange benchmark). This is typically a data quality issue in the benchmark pipeline.

Contributing Benchmarks

CompositeFramework Primary Point Guard MinimumOnly Guard LowerThreshold Guard OptimalRange Guard UpperThreshold Guard OptimalRange Guard LowerThreshold Guard LowerThreshold Guard

Evidence & Context

A persistent F:B ratio (measured by PLFA or DNA methods) of less than 0.3 should be considered a red flag, indicating severe soil degradation.

Metric Definition:

Fungal to bacterial biomass ratio in soil as an indicator of microbial community structure and ecosystem functional state.

Benchmark Definition:

Critical lower threshold of fungal to bacterial biomass ratio below which severe soil degradation is indicated.

Justification:

This threshold is supported by evidence linking low F:B ratios to systemic failures such as extreme acidity, low organic matter, and collapse of microbial function.

Sources (1)

Preview of The incorporation of fungal to bacterial ratios and plant ecosystem effect traits into a state-and-transition model of land-use change in semi-arid grasslands
The incorporation of fungal to bacterial ratios and plant ecosystem effect traits into a state-and-transition model of land-use change in semi-arid grasslands Journal

The incorporation of fungal to bacterial ratios and plant ecosystem effect traits into a state-and-transition model of land-use change in semi-arid grasslands

View Source

Supporting Sources (31)

Additional references from the underlying research that informed this benchmark.

Preview of (PDF) The measurement of soil fungal:bacterial biomass ratios as an ..., accessed July 19, 2025,
(PDF) The measurement of soil fungal:bacterial biomass ratios as an ..., accessed July 19, 2025,
Contextual Support Journal

Soil microbial community composition under Eucalyptus plantations of different age in subtropical China - ResearchGate, accessed July 23, 2025

View Source
Preview of Are Fungal to Bacterial Ratios (F:B Ratio) Important for Plant Growth? - Garden Myths
Are Fungal to Bacterial Ratios (F:B Ratio) Important for Plant Growth? - Garden Myths
Contextual Support Journal

Derived Benchmark: Analysis of Fungal:Bacterial Ratios in Australian Arid Ecosystems and Analogous Land Management Systems

View Source
Preview of Are Fungal to Bacterial Ratios (F:B Ratio) Important for Plant Growth? - Garden Myths, accessed July 28, 2025
Are Fungal to Bacterial Ratios (F:B Ratio) Important for Plant Growth? - Garden Myths, accessed July 28, 2025
Contextual Support GreyLiterature

Fungal/bacterial ratios in grasslands with contrasting nitrogen management, accessed July 23, 2025

View Source
Preview of ausveg - fact sheet: soil microbiology, accessed July 18, 2025
ausveg - fact sheet: soil microbiology, accessed July 18, 2025
Contextual Support Journal

ausveg - fact sheet: soil microbiology

View Source
Preview of Biogeographical patterns of the soil fungal:bacterial ratio across France - PubMed Central, accessed July 18, 2025
Biogeographical patterns of the soil fungal:bacterial ratio across France - PubMed Central, accessed July 18, 2025
Contextual Support Journal

Mechanisms and implications of bacterial–fungal competition for soil resources - PMC, accessed July 23, 2025

View Source
Preview of Calibration of the substrate induced respiration and selective inhibition techniques for fungal bacterial ratios in Western Aust - CiteSeerX
Calibration of the substrate induced respiration and selective inhibition techniques for fungal bacterial ratios in Western Aust - CiteSeerX
Contextual Support

Calibration of the substrate induced respiration and selective inhibition techniques for fungal bacterial ratios in Western Aust - CiteSeerX, accessed June 7, 2025,

View Source
Preview of Contrasting Soil pH Effects on Fungal and Bacterial Growth Suggest ...
Contrasting Soil pH Effects on Fungal and Bacterial Growth Suggest ...
Contextual Support Journal

Microbial regulation of terrestrial nitrous oxide formation: understanding the biological pathways for prediction of emission rates | FEMS Microbiology Reviews | Oxford Academic

View Source
Preview of Contrasting Soil pH Effects on Fungal and Bacterial Growth Suggest Functional Redundancy in Carbon Mineralization | Applied and Environmental Microbiology - ASM Journals, accessed July 28, 2025
Contrasting Soil pH Effects on Fungal and Bacterial Growth Suggest Functional Redundancy in Carbon Mineralization | Applied and Environmental Microbiology - ASM Journals, accessed July 28, 2025
Contextual Support

Contrasting Soil pH Effects on Fungal and Bacterial Growth Suggest Functional Redundancy in Carbon Mineralization | Applied and Environmental Microbiology - ASM Journals, accessed July 23, 2025

View Source
Preview of Dr Megan Wong - CeRDI
Dr Megan Wong - CeRDI
Contextual Support GreyLiterature

Dr Megan Wong - CeRDI

View Source
Preview of Farming systems can affect soil biology, soil pathogens and system resilience - GRDC
Farming systems can affect soil biology, soil pathogens and system resilience - GRDC
Contextual Support GreyLiterature

Beyond Bacteria: The Importance of Fungi, Protozoa and Nematodes in Soil Microbiology, accessed July 27, 2025,

View Source
Preview of Fungal and Bacterial Abundance in Long-Term No-Till and Intensive-Till Soils of the Northern Great Plains | Request PDF - ResearchGate
Fungal and Bacterial Abundance in Long-Term No-Till and Intensive-Till Soils of the Northern Great Plains | Request PDF - ResearchGate
Direct Evidence Journal

Fungal/bacterial ratios in grasslands with contrasting nitrogen management - ResearchGate, accessed August 9, 2025,

View Source
Preview of Fungal-mediated soil aggregation as a mechanism for carbon stabilization - PMC
Fungal-mediated soil aggregation as a mechanism for carbon stabilization - PMC
Contextual Support Journal

Gupta Vadakattu - CSIRO people

View Source
Preview of Fungal/bacterial ratios in grassland with contrasting nitrogen management - Wageningen University & Research, accessed July 28, 2025
Fungal/bacterial ratios in grassland with contrasting nitrogen management - Wageningen University & Research, accessed July 28, 2025
Contextual Support Journal

Fungal/bacterial ratios in grassland with contrasting nitrogen management - Wageningen University & Research, accessed July 30, 2025,

View Source
Preview of Fungal/bacterial ratios in grasslands with contrasting nitrogen management - ResearchGate, accessed July 18, 2025
Fungal/bacterial ratios in grasslands with contrasting nitrogen management - ResearchGate, accessed July 18, 2025
Contextual Support Journal

Adaptive multi-paddock grazing increases soil nutrient availability and bacteria to fungi ratio in grassland soils | Request PDF - ResearchGate, accessed August 9, 2025,

View Source
Preview of Fungal/bacterial ratios in grasslands with contrasting nitrogen management, accessed July 19, 2025,
Fungal/bacterial ratios in grasslands with contrasting nitrogen management, accessed July 19, 2025,
Contextual Support Journal

Soil Fungal:Bacterial Ratios Are Linked to Altered Carbon Cycling - Frontiers, accessed July 30, 2025,

View Source
Preview of Long-term use of cover crops and no-till shift soil microbial community life strategies in agricultural soil - PubMed Central
Long-term use of cover crops and no-till shift soil microbial community life strategies in agricultural soil - PubMed Central
Contextual Support Journal

Microbial Communities Associated With Long-Term Tillage and Fertility Treatments in a Corn-Soybean Cropping System - PubMed Central

View Source
Preview of Making Microbes: Fungal vs Bacterial Soil Life Rancho Mastatal
Making Microbes: Fungal vs Bacterial Soil Life Rancho Mastatal
Contextual Support Journal

Making Microbes: Fungal vs Bacterial Soil Life Rancho Mastatal

View Source
Preview of Mapping Australia's soil biodiversity - CSIRO, accessed August 5, 2025,
Mapping Australia's soil biodiversity - CSIRO, accessed August 5, 2025,
Contextual Support GreyLiterature

Mapping Australia's soil biodiversity - CSIRO, accessed August 9, 2025,

View Source
Preview of Mechanisms and implications of bacterial–fungal competition for soil resources - PMC, accessed July 18, 2025
Mechanisms and implications of bacterial–fungal competition for soil resources - PMC, accessed July 18, 2025
Contextual Support Journal

Soil Fungal:Bacterial Ratios Are Linked to Altered Carbon Cycling - Frontiers, accessed July 23, 2025

View Source
Preview of Procedure for Soil Respiration (CO2 Evolution from Rewetting a Dried Soil) - Soil Fertility, accessed July 9, 2025
Procedure for Soil Respiration (CO2 Evolution from Rewetting a Dried Soil) - Soil Fertility, accessed July 9, 2025
Contextual Support GreyLiterature

Soil pH and Organic Matter - MSU Extension | Montana State University, accessed July 28, 2025,

View Source
Preview of Regenerative agriculture - UK Parliament
Regenerative agriculture - UK Parliament
Contextual Support Journal

Regenerative agriculture in Australia: the changing face of farming - Frontiers, accessed July 27, 2025,

View Source
Preview of Regenerative Agriculture—A Literature Review on the Practices and Mechanisms Used to Improve Soil Health - MDPI, accessed August 5, 2025,
Regenerative Agriculture—A Literature Review on the Practices and Mechanisms Used to Improve Soil Health - MDPI, accessed August 5, 2025,
Contextual Support Journal

Regenerative Agriculture—A Literature Review on the Practices and Mechanisms Used to Improve Soil Health - MDPI, accessed August 28, 2025,

View Source
Preview of Soil Fungal:Bacterial Ratios Are Linked to Altered Carbon Cycling - Frontiers
Soil Fungal:Bacterial Ratios Are Linked to Altered Carbon Cycling - Frontiers
Contextual Support GreyLiterature

Soil Fungal:Bacterial Ratios Are Linked to Altered Carbon Cycling - Frontiers

View Source
Preview of Soil Health and Nutrient Density: Beyond Organic vs. Conventional Farming - Frontiers
Soil Health and Nutrient Density: Beyond Organic vs. Conventional Farming - Frontiers
Contextual Support GreyLiterature

Soil Bacteria and Fungi - NSW | Fact Sheets | soilquality.org.au, accessed July 8, 2025

View Source
Preview of Soil microbiome and biodiversity implications – are we ignoring cost-effective proxies of biodiversity measures? | TERN Australia, accessed on June 7, 2025,
Soil microbiome and biodiversity implications – are we ignoring cost-effective proxies of biodiversity measures? | TERN Australia, accessed on June 7, 2025,
Contextual Support GreyLiterature

Soil microbiome and biodiversity implications – are we ignoring cost-effective proxies of biodiversity measures? | TERN Australia, accessed August 9, 2025,

View Source
Preview of Soils are Alive Newsletter - Symbio
Soils are Alive Newsletter - Symbio
Contextual Support Journal

Soils are Alive Newsletter - Symbio

View Source
Preview of The Effect of Alternative Dryland Crops on Soil Microbial Communities - MDPI
The Effect of Alternative Dryland Crops on Soil Microbial Communities - MDPI
Contextual Support Journal

The Effect of Alternative Dryland Crops on Soil Microbial Communities - MDPI

View Source
Preview of The Effects of Cropping Regimes on Fungal and Bacterial Communities of Wheat and Faba Bean in a Greenhouse Pot Experiment Differ between Plant Species and Compartment - Frontiers
The Effects of Cropping Regimes on Fungal and Bacterial Communities of Wheat and Faba Bean in a Greenhouse Pot Experiment Differ between Plant Species and Compartment - Frontiers
Contextual Support Journal

Changes in Bacterial and Fungal Soil Communities in Long-Term Organic Cropping Systems - MDPI

View Source
Preview of The incorporation of fungal to bacterial ratios and plant ecosystem effect traits into a state-and-transition model of land-use change in semi-arid grasslands - Research @ Flinders, accessed August 3, 2025
The incorporation of fungal to bacterial ratios and plant ecosystem effect traits into a state-and-transition model of land-use change in semi-arid grasslands - Research @ Flinders, accessed August 3, 2025
Contextual Support Journal

The incorporation of fungal to bacterial ratios and plant ecosystem effect traits into a state-and-transition model of land-use change in semi-arid grasslands - Research @ Flinders

View Source
Preview of Things you need to know about the Fungal to Bacterial Ratio (F:B) - MicroBiometer, accessed July 28, 2025
Things you need to know about the Fungal to Bacterial Ratio (F:B) - MicroBiometer, accessed July 28, 2025
Contextual Support GreyLiterature

Australian dryland soils are acidic and nutrient-depleted, and have unique microbial communities compared with other drylands - PMC, accessed July 23, 2025

View Source
Preview of Tillage Practices and Residue Management Manipulate Soil Bacterial and Fungal Communities and Networks in Maize Agroecosystems - PubMed Central
Tillage Practices and Residue Management Manipulate Soil Bacterial and Fungal Communities and Networks in Maize Agroecosystems - PubMed Central
Contextual Support Journal

Contrasting soil microbial abundance and diversity on and between pasture drill rows in the third growing season after sowing - CSIRO Research Publications Repository

View Source

Context

  • Region Australia
  • Biome Temperate Grassy Woodlands & Plains
  • Land Use Agricultural Crop Production
  • Assessment Pristine Reference
  • Evidence Type DegradationThreshold

Lifecycle

  • Status Active
  • Version 1
  • Effective From 23 Mar 2026

Notes

This threshold serves as a diagnostic indicator of severe soil degradation and ecosystem dysfunction.

Related Benchmarks

Other benchmarks in the AUS-TGP-AGR-SFB family.

1 index Moderate
Agricultural Crop Production · Pristine Reference
MinimumOnly Active v1
— index Moderate
Agricultural Crop Production · Pristine Reference
OptimalRange Active v1
5 index Moderate
Agricultural Crop Production · Pristine Reference
UpperThreshold Active v1