Root exudates are the main medium of communication between crops and soil，play important roles in the activation of nutrients in soil，the nutrient uptake and growth of crops.This article summarized the classification and function of root exudates，and their effects on the activation of nutrients including nitrogen，phosphorus，potassium and iron in soil，the nutrient absorption and growth of crops to study the relationship between root exudates，crops，soil and microorganisms，and to use different root exudates to achieve interspecific promotion，improve the utilization rate of natural resources and agricultural productivity.The different mechanisms of crop response to nutrient stress were discussed.The prospects including strengthening the identification means of root exudates to realize the in-situ damage-free identification and analysis of root exudate components，using interdisciplinary knowledge to further reveal the root-soil interface biological interaction process of efficient utilization of crop nutrients mediated by root exudates，focusing on functional localization of target genes and microorganisms that verify that root exudates affect plant response to biotic and abiotic stresses，using genetic engineering to effectively improve plant health，promoting the process of transforming research results into scientific and technological applications，and applying beneficial root exudates to practical production via using bionics principle were put forward.