Intercropping of non-leguminous crops improves soil biochemistry and crop productivity: a meta-analysis

IF 8.3 1区生物学 Q1 PLANT SCIENCES

New Phytologist Pub Date : 2025-02-28 DOI:10.1111/nph.70037

Muhammad Khashi u Rahman, Zaki Saati-Santamaría, Paula García-Fraile

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Plant species-rich systems tend to be more productive than depauperate ones. In agroecosystems, increasing crop plant diversity by including legumes often increases soil nitrogen (N) and improves soil fertility; however, such generality in outcomes of non-leguminous crop mixture is unknown.
Here, through a meta-analysis of 174 individual cases, we explored the current global research trend of intercropping of exclusively non-leguminous crops (IC_nl) and quantified its effect on agroecosystem productivity key metrics, for example crop plant health, soil chemistry, and microbial community under diverse experimental conditions.
IC_nl increased plant biomass and disease suppression and provided a notable yield advantage over monocultures. In addition to phosphorus and potassium, IC_nl also increased plant-available soil N, which, along with increased soil microbial abundance, was positively associated with increased soil organic matter. These positive effects were more pronounced in experiments with long duration (> 1 yr), field soil conditions, and soil pH > 7.
IC_nl improves several crop productivity metrics, which could augment sustainable crop production, particularly when practiced for a long duration and in alkaline soils.

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来源期刊

New Phytologist 生物-植物科学

自引率

5.30%

发文量

728

期刊介绍： New Phytologist is an international electronic journal published 24 times a year. It is owned by the New Phytologist Foundation, a non-profit-making charitable organization dedicated to promoting plant science. The journal publishes excellent, novel, rigorous, and timely research and scholarship in plant science and its applications. The articles cover topics in five sections: Physiology & Development, Environment, Interaction, Evolution, and Transformative Plant Biotechnology. These sections encompass intracellular processes, global environmental change, and encourage cross-disciplinary approaches. The journal recognizes the use of techniques from molecular and cell biology, functional genomics, modeling, and system-based approaches in plant science. Abstracting and Indexing Information for New Phytologist includes Academic Search, AgBiotech News & Information, Agroforestry Abstracts, Biochemistry & Biophysics Citation Index, Botanical Pesticides, CAB Abstracts®, Environment Index, Global Health, and Plant Breeding Abstracts, and others.