Shuaibo Shao, Zhongwei Li, Yanqi Zhu, Yi Li, Yuanping Li, Linkun Wu, Christopher Rensing, Pumo Cai, Caihao Wang, Jianmin Zhang, Qisong Li
{"title":"Green manure (Ophiopogon japonicus) cover promotes tea plant growth by regulating soil carbon cycling","authors":"Shuaibo Shao, Zhongwei Li, Yanqi Zhu, Yi Li, Yuanping Li, Linkun Wu, Christopher Rensing, Pumo Cai, Caihao Wang, Jianmin Zhang, Qisong Li","doi":"10.3389/fmicb.2024.1439267","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"IntroductionIn mountainous tea plantations, which are the primary mode of tea cultivation in China, issues such as soil erosion and declining soil fertility are particularly severe. Although green manure cover is an effective agricultural measure for restoring soil fertility, its application in mountainous tea plantations has been relatively understudied.MethodsThis study investigated the effects of continuous green manure cover using the slope-protecting plant <jats:italic>Ophiopogon japonicus</jats:italic> on tea plant growth and soil microbial community structure. We implemented three treatments: 1 year of green manure coverage, 2 years of coverage, and a control, to study their effects on tea plant growth, soil physicochemical properties, and soil bacterial and fungal communities.ResultsResults demonstrate that green manure coverage significantly promote the growth of tea plants, enhanced organic matter and pH levels in soil, and various enzyme activities, including peroxidases and cellulases. Further functional prediction results indicate that green manure coverage markedly promoted several carbon cycling functions in soil microbes, including xylanolysis, cellulolysis, degradation of aromatic compounds, and saprotrophic processes. LEfSe analysis indicated that under green manure cover, the soil tends to enrich more beneficial microbial communities with degradation functions, such as <jats:italic>Sphingomonas</jats:italic>, <jats:italic>Sinomonas</jats:italic>, and <jats:italic>Haliangium</jats:italic> (bacteria), and <jats:italic>Penicillium</jats:italic>, <jats:italic>Apiotrichum</jats:italic>, and <jats:italic>Talaromyce</jats:italic> (fungi). In addition. Random forest and structural equation models indicated that carbon cycling, as a significant differentiating factor, has a significant promoting effect on tea plant growth.DiscussionIn the management practices of mountainous tea plantations, further utilizing slope-protecting plants as green manure can significantly influence the soil microbial community structure and function, enriching microbes involved in the degradation of organic matter and aromatic compounds, thereby positively impacting tea tree growth and soil nutrient levels.","PeriodicalId":12466,"journal":{"name":"Frontiers in Microbiology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":4.0000,"publicationDate":"2024-09-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Frontiers in Microbiology","FirstCategoryId":"99","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2024.1439267","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"MICROBIOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
IntroductionIn mountainous tea plantations, which are the primary mode of tea cultivation in China, issues such as soil erosion and declining soil fertility are particularly severe. Although green manure cover is an effective agricultural measure for restoring soil fertility, its application in mountainous tea plantations has been relatively understudied.MethodsThis study investigated the effects of continuous green manure cover using the slope-protecting plant Ophiopogon japonicus on tea plant growth and soil microbial community structure. We implemented three treatments: 1 year of green manure coverage, 2 years of coverage, and a control, to study their effects on tea plant growth, soil physicochemical properties, and soil bacterial and fungal communities.ResultsResults demonstrate that green manure coverage significantly promote the growth of tea plants, enhanced organic matter and pH levels in soil, and various enzyme activities, including peroxidases and cellulases. Further functional prediction results indicate that green manure coverage markedly promoted several carbon cycling functions in soil microbes, including xylanolysis, cellulolysis, degradation of aromatic compounds, and saprotrophic processes. LEfSe analysis indicated that under green manure cover, the soil tends to enrich more beneficial microbial communities with degradation functions, such as Sphingomonas, Sinomonas, and Haliangium (bacteria), and Penicillium, Apiotrichum, and Talaromyce (fungi). In addition. Random forest and structural equation models indicated that carbon cycling, as a significant differentiating factor, has a significant promoting effect on tea plant growth.DiscussionIn the management practices of mountainous tea plantations, further utilizing slope-protecting plants as green manure can significantly influence the soil microbial community structure and function, enriching microbes involved in the degradation of organic matter and aromatic compounds, thereby positively impacting tea tree growth and soil nutrient levels.
期刊介绍:
Frontiers in Microbiology is a leading journal in its field, publishing rigorously peer-reviewed research across the entire spectrum of microbiology. Field Chief Editor Martin G. Klotz at Washington State University is supported by an outstanding Editorial Board of international researchers. This multidisciplinary open-access journal is at the forefront of disseminating and communicating scientific knowledge and impactful discoveries to researchers, academics, clinicians and the public worldwide.