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Crop diversity increases disease suppressive capacity of soil microbiomes
- Publication Year :
- 2015
- Publisher :
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, 2015.
-
Abstract
- Microbiomes can aid in the protection of hosts from infection and disease, but the mechanisms underpinning these functions in complex environmental systems remain unresolved. Soils contain microbiomes that influence plant performance, including their susceptibility to disease. For example, some soil microorganisms produce antimicrobial compounds that suppress the growth of plant pathogens, which can provide benefits for sustainable agricultural management. Evidence shows that crop rotations increase soil fertility and tend to promote microbial diversity, and it has been hypothesized that crop rotations can enhance disease suppressive capacity, either through the influence of plant diversity impacting soil bacterial composition or through the increased abundance of disease suppressive microorganisms. In this study, we used a long-term field experiment to test the effects of crop diversity through time (i.e., rotations) on soil microbial diversity and disease suppressive capacity. We sampled soil from seven treatments along a crop diversity gradient (from monoculture to five crop species rotation) and a spring fallow (non-crop) treatment to examine crop diversity influence on soil microbiomes including bacteria that are capable of producing antifungal compounds. Crop diversity significantly influenced bacterial community composition, where the most diverse cropping systems with cover crops and fallow differed from bacterial communities in the 1-3 crop species diversity treatments. While soil bacterial diversity was about 4% lower in the most diverse crop rotation (corn-soy-wheat + 2 cover crops) compared to monoculture corn, crop diversity increased disease suppressive functional group prnD gene abundance in the more diverse rotation by about 9% compared to monocultures. Identifying patterns in microbial diversity and ecosystem function relationships can provide insight into microbiome management, which will require manipulating soil nutrients and resources mediated through plant diversity.
- Subjects :
- 0106 biological sciences
2. Zero hunger
fungi
food and beverages
04 agricultural and veterinary sciences
15. Life on land
Crop rotation
Biology
respiratory system
010603 evolutionary biology
01 natural sciences
Agronomy
Crop diversity
Abundance (ecology)
Soil water
040103 agronomy & agriculture
0401 agriculture, forestry, and fisheries
Ecosystem
Monoculture
Soil fertility
Cover crop
human activities
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....996a7445ca03ed0efc9042e8f32b945b
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1101/030528