Actinomycetes, Ammonification, Bacteria, Earthworms, Fungi, Herbicides, India, Nematodes, Nitrification, Nitrogen fixation, Soil enzymes

The assessment and monitoring of soil life and soil health can be used to develop more sustainable and productive farming systems. Hence, the consequence of herbicide application on soil health is always a concern for the research community. In view of this, the findings available from India in respect to the impact of herbicides on the non-target organisms and important soil bio-chemical processes are reviewed in this paper. There is great variation among the reports showing short term transient depressing to non-inhibitory or even stimulatory effects of herbicides on total soil microbial count and different soil bio-chemical indices. The impact differed depending upon the soil type, experimental conditions, herbicide in question and its dose, and the sensitivity of the non-target species or strains. No severe ill effect on soil flora, soil bio-chemical indices and soil fauna has been observed so far at recommended dose of herbicide under field conditions. However, the available information is based on the short term experiments and there is need to develop data base on long-term field application basis. The paper concludes with some suggested areas for future research requiring urgent attention.