[Bacterial soil variety: evaluation of methods, possibilities, and prospects ]

The paper presents a comparative description of the modern molecular genetic and routine culture techniques for assessing microbial diversity in soils and gives analysis for the different results obtained by these two groups of methods. The necessity of the collaboration of soil scientists, microbiologists, and molecular biologists in integrating different research methods for a proper assessment of soil microbial diversity is discussed. The paramount importance of soil as the source and reserve of biodiversity on the Earth is emphasized.