Revealing the role of the rhizosphere microbiota in reproductive growth for fruit productivity when inorganic fertilizer is partially replaced by organic fertilizer in pear orchard fields

Abstract

In order to address the global crisis in pear productivity, there has been increased attention given to advocating for the use of organic fertilizers. As part of this effort, researchers have been investigating the microbial properties of organic fertilizers to better understand their potential impact on fruit productivity. Our research focused specifically on the impact of four different ratios of sheep manure (SM) and chemical fertilizers (CF) on pear productivity. We found that replacing CF with SM resulted in a proliferation of gammaproteobacteria, Chlamydiae, Bastocatellia and Clostridia in the soil rhizosphere, which is the region around the roots of plants where most nutrient uptake occurs. Using redundancy analysis, we were able to determine that SM was particularly effective at promoting the growth of gammaproteobacteria and clostridia, which were associated with C:N ratios around 14:1 as well as the availability of K, Fe, Zn and Cu. This combination of factors was conducive to a transition from vegetative growth to reproductive growth, resulting in an increase in pear production from 43 to 56 tons per hectare. We also discovered that Blastociella acts as a buffering system in regulating soil acidity. Taken together, our findings indicate that a combination of SM and CF can improve the abundance of beneficial bacteria in the rhizosphere, leading to an increase in pear productivity.