Cotton growers generally recognise crop performance or yield as the best indicator of soil biology. The record yields of recent seasons indicate that farmers are generally looking after their soils well from the perspective of plant nutition and control of soil bourne diseases. However, there are a number of concerns which may impinge on the continued success of cotton crop performance. These include questions such as:

1)Are current cotton growing practises sustainable in the long term?

2)Will declining soil carbon levels present problems in the future?

3)Is the quality/biology of cotton soils under threat?

4)Are there better ways of looking after our soils?

Crop yield can be primarily driven by a combination of factors associated with soil chemical and physical fertility and best practises in crop selection and management. However, for a more complete integration of all components of soil biology into decision-making tools used by farmers, there is increasing recognition of the contribution of soil biological processes to 'healthy' soil.