Like cover crops, soil microbes play many important roles, so that they can be likened to a tool kit with several different parts. Microbes provide pathogen and pest protection, promote plant growth, enhance soil structure and aggregation, assist in making nutrients available to plants, retain nutrients in the soil profile, fix nitrogen into the soil ecosystem, and build soil carbon. Considering all of these benefits, it is clear that soil microbes should be considered among the many tools employed on a farm.