Decomposition

Nearly all water-soluble nutrients recycle back into the soil microbe food chain. Only those nutrients directly at the surface of the root are picked up by the plants. Mycorrhizae are symbiotic relationships between plants and fungi and can greatly increase the surface area of the root, aiding the transportation of nutrients.  Plants "insure" that microbes, microbivores and predators are common on their root surfaces by secreting lots of attractive chemicals.