Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment最新文献

{"title":"Diversifying Grapevines With Aromatic Plants Changes the Soil Habitat, Microbial Community Composition and Functions Toward More Efficient Substrate Use and Nutrient Allocation","authors":"Felix Dittrich,&nbsp;Loredana Canfora,&nbsp;Luigi Orrù,&nbsp;Bei Liu,&nbsp;Christoph C. Tebbe,&nbsp;Sören Thiele-Bruhn","doi":"10.1002/sae2.70071","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70071","url":null,"abstract":"<p>In vineyards facing soil degradation and biodiversity loss, crop diversification may improve sustainability, but its effects on the soil microbiome remain unclear. In a 3-year field study, we examined how diversifying the plant row under grapevine with aromatic plants affected topsoil properties (0–10 cm) in an organically farmed, steep-sloped vineyard. Specifically, we investigated the effects of diversification with oregano and thyme on microbial biomass, respiration, prokaryotic and fungal community compositions, enzyme activities, potential nitrification, and abiotic soil properties, including total and particulate organic carbon (TOC, POC), nutrient status, pH, and soil moisture. Grapevines alone with mechanical tillage served as control. The aromatic plants competed with grapevines by lowering soil nutrient contents and moisture. Aromatic plant litter had a small, mostly non-significant but consistent effect on POC contents, and POC stocks determined in the final year showed a slight increasing trend in the order control (10.9 ± 2.8 t POC ha⁻¹) &lt; thyme (12.6 ± 3.1) &lt; oregano (13.1 ± 4.1). Surprisingly, these changes coincided with a significant decrease in microbial biomass compared to control, indicating aromatic plant-microbe competition. Concomitant decreases in respiration and the activity of C-cycling enzymes but also the metabolic quotient, suggest lower carbon mineralisation but more efficient microbial carbon use. Multivariate statistics revealed that the prokaryotic community was primarily structured by abiotic soil properties, such as organic matter, nutrient and water availability. In contrast, the fungal community exhibited a stronger plant-specific response, with changes in composition likely driven by root-associated interactions, suggesting a more direct biotic influence. Especially, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and potential nitrification were promoted under both aromatic plants, which may benefit grapevine growth. Overall, we show that diversifying perennial agroecosystems such as vineyards with aromatic plants increases soil habitat heterogeneity with benefits for microbial diversity, carbon sequestration and nutrient cycling, demonstrating its positive impact on soil biodiversity and functioning.</p>","PeriodicalId":100834,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/sae2.70071","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144140831","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Assessing Heat Stress Impacts on Cotton Yield and Revenue: A Multilevel Regression Approach in the Southern U.S.","authors":"Oduniyi Oluwaseun Samuel,&nbsp;McCallister Donna,&nbsp;Gao Long,&nbsp;Bastos Leonardo,&nbsp;Jagadish S. V. Krishna","doi":"10.1002/sae2.70070","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70070","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Climate change-induced heat stress significantly threatens cotton production in the Southern United States, reducing yields and farm revenue. This study quantifies the impact of rising temperatures using a multilevel regression model applied to historical climate and yield data (1980–2018) from key cotton-growing regions. The analysis examines how maximum and minimum temperatures, precipitation, and growing degree days influence yield at different growth stages. Results show that a 1°C increase in maximum temperature during the flowering stage (TmaxGS2) reduces cotton yield by 5.5%, leading to revenue losses of up to $219 per acre. Conversely, higher precipitation during critical growth periods increases yield by 183 lb/acre, partially offsetting heat stress effects. Given these findings, adaptation strategies are essential. We recommend the development of heat-tolerant cotton varieties, improved irrigation management, and expanded financial support programmes, including climate-based crop insurance. Additionally, optimising planting schedules and adopting precision agriculture can help mitigate yield losses. These measures will strengthen the resilience of cotton farming against escalating climate risks, ensuring long-term sustainability. This study provides valuable insights for farmers, policymakers, and researchers working to safeguard cotton production in a changing climate.</p>","PeriodicalId":100834,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/sae2.70070","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144126075","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Biochar Suppresses Growth, Pupation and Eclosion Success of a Specialist (Manduca sexta) and a Generalist (Spodoptera frugiperda) Insect Herbivore","authors":"Nischal Wagle,&nbsp;Soumya Unnikrishnan,&nbsp;Satinderpal Kaur,&nbsp;Engil Pereira,&nbsp;Rupesh Kariyat","doi":"10.1002/sae2.70069","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70069","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Biochar is a charcoal-like substance made by the pyrolysis of organic material from agricultural and forestry waste. While biochar is well documented for altering soil physicochemical conditions, few studies have investigated its possible effects on the management of arthropod pests. Tobacco hornworm (<i>Manduca sexta</i>) and fall armyworm (<i>Spodoptera frugiperda</i>, FAW) are specialist and generalist insect herbivores respectively, that can cause significant defoliation in natural and agricultural ecosystems. In this study, we examined whether walnut shell biochar can affect growth and development of these herbivores. Specifically, we investigated how biochar influences parameters such as mass gain, length of pupation, pupal mass, pupal volume, deformity, duration of eclosion, wingspan, body length, thorax mass and survival. Laboratory experiments were conducted by allowing caterpillars to feed on a modified artificial diet and pupate in a pupation medium mixed with biochar. This was followed by allowing the insects to complete pupation and eclose. We found that in the generalist pest FAW, caterpillars feeding on biochar treated diet gained significantly lower mass and had lower pupal volume compared to their conspecifics feeding on normal control diet. Our results also show that biochar treatment on <i>M. sexta</i> pupae led to a reduction in pupal mass, and increased pupal deformity compared to the control, and these negative effects cascaded to significant reduction in adult mass. We also found that adult wingspan, body length, and survival were significantly lower in the biochar treatment when compared to the control for both species. In addition, the biochar treatments also prolonged the time to eclosion of adult moths and decreased their overall survivability. Based on these findings, we conclude that biochar negatively impacts the growth, pupation and eclosion of lepidopteran herbivores, indicating its potential use in sustainable pest management strategies.</p>","PeriodicalId":100834,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/sae2.70069","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143939548","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Decomposition of Litter and Root Residues From Perennial Intermediate Wheatgrass Governed by the Soil Microbiome and Different Earthworm Species","authors":"Alena Förster,&nbsp;Kristina Michl,&nbsp;Gabriele Berg,&nbsp;Tomislav Cernava,&nbsp;Christoph Emmerling","doi":"10.1002/sae2.70068","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70068","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 \u0000 <section>\u0000 \u0000 <h3> Introduction</h3>\u0000 \u0000 <p>Perennial intermediate wheatgrass (IWG, Kernza®) establishes an extensive root system which positively impacts nutrient retention and biodiversity and therefore offers a regenerative alternative to current annual wheat production. However, the effect of its components on the soil ecosystem, for example, on the macrofauna and microbiota, is not yet understood.</p>\u0000 </section>\u0000 \u0000 <section>\u0000 \u0000 <h3> Materials and Methods</h3>\u0000 \u0000 <p>Litter and root samples of IWG and annual wheat were sampled and used in an experimental design consisting of two pot experiments under controlled conditions to investigate the effect of earthworms and microorganisms on litter and root decomposition differing in starch and element composition. From the experiment, two lifeforms of earthworms (anecic, endogeic) and the soil microbiome were analysed.</p>\u0000 </section>\u0000 \u0000 <section>\u0000 \u0000 <h3> Results</h3>\u0000 \u0000 <p>Both litter and root samples had higher lignin and starch content for IWG as compared to annual wheat. A possible greater nutrient retention for IWG was also indicated by higher nitrogen and carbon contents in both the litter and the root samples. Accordingly, the C/N ratio was lower than for annual wheat, which resulted in a faster decomposition rate and a significantly lower ratio of fungi to bacteria. Both cropping systems showed significant differences in the underlying soil bacterial community composition. Most notably, the IWG root substrate led to a higher diversity in the underlying soil in comparison to the annual wheat substrate.</p>\u0000 </section>\u0000 \u0000 <section>\u0000 \u0000 <h3> Conclusion</h3>\u0000 \u0000 <p>The beneficial substrate composition of IWG supports macrofauna and microbial uptake and decomposition. The rhizosphere harbours a higher microbial diversity and an increased nutrient retention in comparison to annual wheat, recommending IWG for a sustainable and regenerative agriculture.</p>\u0000 </section>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":100834,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/sae2.70068","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143944915","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The Effect of Manure-Based Fertilisers on Nitrogen Mineralisation and Greenhouse Gases Emissions After Soil Application","authors":"Joana Prado,&nbsp;Erik Meers,&nbsp;Henrique Ribeiro,&nbsp;Paula Alvarenga,&nbsp;David Fangueiro","doi":"10.1002/sae2.70062","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70062","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The continuous increase of costs with mineral fertilisers made farmers search for alternatives, while livestock producers face strong challenges to, sustainably, manage large amount of manure. It is, therefore, important to provide strategies that could enhance the use of manures in agriculture, recycling nutrients and organic matter. This study aimed to evaluate the use of manure-based fertilisers (MBFs), with tailored N:P₂O₅ ratios, to values commonly used by farmers: 1:1, 2:1 and 0.5:1. These MBFs were applied to a sandy soil and the resulting nitrogen mineralisation, nitrification rates and greenhouse gases emission were measured. Raw manures (cattle slurry [CaS], pig slurry [PiS] and poultry manure [PoM]) were used directly to obtain the 1:1 N:P₂O₅ ratio. For the 2:1 ratio, two MBFs were produced with each raw manure, plus the addition of urea or ammonium sulphate to provide additional N. To prepare the P richer fertiliser with a 0.5:1 ratio, the pig slurry solid fraction was used on its own, while the CaS and PoM were blended with superphosphate (SP) or with phosphoric acid, to provide additional P. In the 1:1 ratio, both slurries had higher mineralisation rates (~35% of the organic N applied) and lower environmental impact, compared with PoM. Blending PoM with urea, for the 2:1 ratio, improved the N mineralisation rate, while decreasing the N₂O and CO₂ emissions to almost half the value observed with the raw PoM, enhancing its fertiliser value. The addition of SP to PoM decreased the N₂O emissions and presented a similar nitrification rate as the raw material. The results demonstrate that it is possible to produce MBFs with these specific N:P₂O₅ ratios, with potential agronomical and environmental benefits, compared with the raw material.</p>","PeriodicalId":100834,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/sae2.70062","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143938913","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Alley Cropping Can Potentially Alter the Nitrogen and Carbon Soil Cycles and Increase the Abundance of Beneficial Bacteria in a Mediterranean Citrus Orchard","authors":"Margarita Ros,&nbsp;Jessica Cuartero,&nbsp;Onurcan Özbolat,&nbsp;Virginia Sánchez-Navarro,&nbsp;Marcos Egea-Cortines,&nbsp;Maria Almagro,&nbsp;María Hurtado-Navarro,&nbsp;Maria Martinez-Mena,&nbsp;Jose Antonio Pascual,&nbsp;Raúl Zornoza","doi":"10.1002/sae2.70063","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70063","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Monocrop of mandarin leading to reduced soil biodiversity and functionality that must be changed to a sustainable agriculture practice such as alley cropping. In this study an attempt has been made to assess how two different alley cropping strategies promote soil bacterial diversity, microbial activities and the abundance of beneficial bacteria. Three treatments were established: (i) mandarin monoculture (MC); (ii) mandarin diversified with barley/vetch (summer) and with fava bean (winter) for 3 consecutive years (DIV1); and (iii) mandarin diversified with fava bean, purslane and cowpea (DIV2). Results reveal that alley cropping did not significantly affect alfa-diversity indices, but beta-diversity showed significant differences among the three treatments, indicating changes in the bacterial community. Specific genera such as <i>Haliangium, Microbacterium, Pseudonocardia, Solirubrobacter</i> and <i>Sphingomonas</i>, known as plant growth-promoting bacteria, showed higher relative abundances in DIV1 and DIV2 than MC. The genus <i>Novosphingobium</i> showed a higher relative abundance in DIV2, while <i>MND1</i> showed a higher relative abundance in DIV1. Regarding potential gene abundances related to C and N cycling at the end of the experiment, only <i>manB</i> (hemicellulose degradation) showed a higher abundance in DIV2 than MC, while <i>nifH</i> (N fixation), <i>amoA</i>, and <i>hao</i> (nitrification) showed higher values in DIV1 and DIV2. Enzyme activities showed lower values in diversified treatments than in MC. Most significant changes were observed in the diversification of the alley with a sequence of different crops every year (DIV1), rather than repeating the same crops (DIV2). These alley cropping strategies (DIV1 and DIV2) seem an effective strategy to enhance the abundance of beneficial bacteria with increased potential activity related to N fixation and nitrification.</p>","PeriodicalId":100834,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/sae2.70063","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143925932","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Compost Teas Reduce Verticillium dahliae Growth In Vitro via Direct and Volatile Effects","authors":"Hatem M. Younes,&nbsp;Summer R. A. Lockhart,&nbsp;Lynne Carpenter-Boggs","doi":"10.1002/sae2.70067","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70067","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Verticillium wilt of potatoes is caused by the fungus <i>Verticillium dahliae</i>, which leads to significant economic losses in potato production. The fungus is soil-borne and can remain for up to 14 years in the soil or previous crop residues as hard-to-suppress microsclerotia. Compost teas (CTs) have been shown to suppress a variety of pathogenic fungi in food crops and are a sustainable option for pathogen suppression and crop nutrient provision. CTs are prepared by extracting compost in water and allowing it to brew for a period of time. In this study, we used a factorial experiment of two composts with four combinations of additives and aeration time to prepare eight CTs. Each CT was used after 3, 6 and 10 days of brewing. We tested the direct and volatile effects of unsterilised and filter-sterilised CTs on the mycelial growth of <i>V. dahliae</i> in vitro. Unsterilised CTs inhibited <i>V. dahliae</i> growth by 90.1% via direct suppression and 71.7% via volatile suppression. Sterilised CTs inhibited <i>V. dahliae</i> growth by 79.3% via direct suppression and 26.6% via volatile suppression. CT efficacy was least at 3 days of brewing time and greatest at 6 days. Scanning electron microscopy revealed mycoparasitism by several fungal species on <i>V. dahliae</i>, indicating that mycoparasitism may be a source of CT efficacy as a biocontrol agent. This study demonstrates that, with further development, CTs have the potential to be a sustainable solution for suppressing verticillium wilt in potatoes.</p>","PeriodicalId":100834,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-04-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/sae2.70067","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143875682","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Are There Potential Benefits From Using Microbial Products to Control Ammonia and Greenhouse Gases Released From Pig Slurry?","authors":"Marianna Magyar,&nbsp;Márton Dencső,&nbsp;Anita Szabó,&nbsp;Eszter Tóth","doi":"10.1002/sae2.70056","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70056","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Livestock farming and its slurry management represent a significant contributor to global anthropogenic ammonia (NH₃) and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, resulting in negative impacts on the environment. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of two microbial slurry additives (A1, A2) on the emissions of NH₃, methane (CH₄) and carbon dioxide (CO₂) as well as on the changes in chemical properties of slurry in a mesocosm experiment. Two different controls (C1 and C2) were established, due to differences in the methodology of the additives studied. Although the A1 treatment showed significantly (3.3 times) higher NH₃ emissions than the A2 treatment, it is not evident that the additive alone is responsible for the observed differences, as (3.5 times) higher NH₃ emissions were also detected in the control C1 treatment than in the C2. An opposite trend was observed for CH₄ emissions, with higher average values in the A2 and C2 treatments. The differences can also be attributed to the different conditions in the use of the additive. Incubation of the A2 additive required additional water and maize grits, which diluted the slurry and changed its pH. The two additives had no impact on the emissions when compared to their respective control treatments. The results for CO₂ were more nuanced with no clear trends. The treatments had a significant effect on NH₃ emissions, whereas the weekly addition of pig slurry was the main contributing factor in the variation of CO₂ and CH₄ emissions.</p>","PeriodicalId":100834,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-04-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/sae2.70056","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143875683","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Identification of Endophytic Bacterial Community Associated With Roots of Desert Vegetation","authors":"Shafeeq Rahman,&nbsp;Mughair Abdul Aziz,&nbsp;Azra Shamim,&nbsp;Manzoor Ahmad,&nbsp;Juma Ali Saif Alneyadi,&nbsp;Ahmed Nasser Youssef,&nbsp;Abdulrahman Saeed Alreyashi,&nbsp;Abdulla Mohammed Alshamsi,&nbsp;Khaled Masmoudi","doi":"10.1002/sae2.70065","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70065","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Native plants thriving in extreme environments host unique microbial communities that might play crucial roles in promoting their growth and enhancing tolerance to harsh environmental conditions. In this study, the root-associated microbial communities were analysed from ten desert native plant species. The analysis was conducted using the V3–V4 regions of the 16S rRNA gene to assess the taxonomic diversity, composition, and functional characteristics of root-associated bacterial microbiomes. A total of 1,078,916 high-quality sequences obtained from ten different plants were clustered into 3,842 Amplicon Sequence Variants (ASVs). Alpha and beta diversity indices revealed that trees and grasses exhibited higher diversity and richness in root-associated bacterial microbial community compared to shrubs and herbs. Analysis of Similarities (ANOSIM) and PERMANOVA further confirmed significant differences between the bacterial communities of the four plant types. At the phylum level, Proteobacteria (31%–75%) dominated the microbial communities associated with trees and shrubs. Herbs and grass exhibited a different composition, with Fermicutes (41%) and Actinobacteriota (56%), respectively. In the bacterial order, Lachnospirales (41%–44%) was dominant bacterial community in trees and herbs, Rickettsiales (80%) in shrubs, and Streptomycetales (50%) in the grass. At the genus level, <i>Muribaculum</i> was dominant in trees, while <i>Nocardioides</i> in shrubs, herbs and grass (30%–80%). Functional prediction analyses indicated that nitrogen assimilation was abundant mainly in herbs. While methane and ammonia oxidation processes were enriched in the microbial communities of shrubs and trees. Our findings determine the common bacterial microbiome communities associated with the different desert plant roots that may support their growth in the arid environment. These findings can potentially improve sustainable agricultural practices in arid regions.</p>","PeriodicalId":100834,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-04-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/sae2.70065","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143857121","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Temperate Forest Soil Microbiomes and Their Assembly Processes are Modulated by the Interplay of Co-Existing Tree Species Identity, Diversity and Their Mycorrhizal Type","authors":"Hafeez Ul Haq,&nbsp;Bala Singavarapu,&nbsp;Amelie Hauer,&nbsp;Nico Eisenhauer,&nbsp;Olga Ferlian,&nbsp;Helge Bruelheide,&nbsp;Tesfaye Wubet","doi":"10.1002/sae2.70064","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/sae2.70064","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Recent studies have highlighted the significant role of tree species' mycorrhizal traits on forest soil microbial communities and their associated ecosystem functions. However, our understanding of how tree species richness in mono-mycorrhizal (arbuscular mycorrhiza [AM] or ectomycorrhiza [EcM]) or mixed-mycorrhizal (AM and EcM = AE) stands affects the rooting zone microbial community assembly processes remains limited. We investigated this knowledge gap using the MyDiv tree diversity experiment, which comprises plantings of AM and EcM tree species and their mixture in one-, two-, and four-species plots. Soil microbiomes in the target tree rooting zone were analyzed using meta-barcoding of the fungal ITS2 and bacterial 16S V4 rRNA regions. We examined the effects of plot mycorrhizal type, tree species identity and richness on microbial diversity, community composition, and microbial community assembly processes. We found that AM plots exhibited higher fungal richness compared to EcM and mixed mycorrhizal type (AE) plots, whereas tree species identity and diversity showed no significant impact on fungal and bacterial alpha diversity within mono and mixed mycorrhizal type plots. The soil fungal community composition was shaped by tree species identity, tree diversity, and plot mycorrhizal type, while bacterial community composition was only affected by tree species identity. EcM tree species significantly impacted both soil fungal and bacterial community compositions. Plot mycorrhizal type and tree species richness displayed interactive effects on the fungal and bacterial community composition, with AM and EcM plots displaying contrasting patterns as tree diversity increased. Our results suggest that both stochastic and deterministic processes shape microbial community assemblage in mono and mixed mycorrhizal type tree communities. The importance of deterministic processes decreases from AM to EcM plots primarily due to homogeneous selection, while stochastic processes increase, mainly due to dispersal limitation. Stochastic processes affected fungal and bacterial community assembly differently, through dispersal limitation and homogenous dispersal, respectively. In fungi, the core, intermediate and rare abundance fungal taxa were mainly controlled by both stochastic and deterministic processes whereas bacterial communities were dominantly shaped by stochastic processes. These findings provide valuable insights into the role of tree species identity, diversity and mycorrhizal type mixture on the soil microbiome community composition and assembly processes, highlighting the differential impacts on core and rare microbial taxa. Understanding the balance between deterministic and stochastic processes can help forest ecosystem management by predicting microbial community responses to land-use and environmental changes and influencing ecosystem functions critical for ecosystem health and productivity.</p>","PeriodicalId":100834,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Sustainable Agriculture and Environment","volume":"4 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-04-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/sae2.70064","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143856993","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}