Winter Rye Cover Cropping Changes Squash (Cucurbita pepo) Phyllosphere Microbiota and Reduces Pseudomonas syringae Symptoms

Cover cropping is a soil conservation practice that may reduce the impacts of the economically important pathogen Pseudomonas syringae on crops, including squash (Cucurbita pepo). To date, no studies have directly quantified the effect of rye cover crops on P. syringae populations or on the bacterial community of squash leaves. In this work, we tested the hypothesis that the protective effects of cover cropping on squash may be mediated by cover cropping effects on the plant’s microbiota that, in turn, protect against P. syringae. Using combined 16S sequencing and culture-based approaches, we showed that rye cover cropping protects squash against P. syringae, by decreasing pathogen population size on squash leaves and increasing fruit health and marketability at harvest. We also found evidence of a strong effect of rye cover crops on bacterial communities of the squash phyllosphere. Those findings were more striking early in the growing season. Finally, we identified numerous phyllosphere bacteria belonging to the genera Sphingomonas, Methylobacterium, and Pseudomonas that were promoted by rye cover crops. Overall, our findings suggest that cover cropping is effective for the sustainable management of P. syringae on squash and may provide a reservoir of potential microbial biocontrol agents colonizing the phyllosphere.[Graphic: see text] Copyright © 2022 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license.