Actinobacteria derived from soybean/corn intercropping influence the subsequent wheat

Abstract

Soil legacy effects, especially soil bacterial legacy effects, influence growth, fitness and nutrient acquisition in sequential cropping systems. To date, mechanisms underlying soil bacterial legacy influences on subsequent crops remain largely unknown. In this study, we employed soybean monoculture (S), corn monoculture (C), and soybean/corn intercropping (SC) to study soil legacy effects on the growth and nutrient acquisition of wheat. In these tests, S, C and SC drove establishment of distinctive soil bacterial communities, with higher abundances of Actinobacteria and Proteobacteria taxa observed in SC plots than in S and C treatments. Variation among soil bacterial communities was associated with functional shifts in nitrogen cycling in SC treatment compared to other treatments（C and Control）. Soil legacy effects in turn may contribute to growth, nutrient acquisition and grain production in wheat crops planted in rotations. Pot assay suggest that soil microorganism of SC treatment significantly increased the plant height of wheat by 15.1 % and 18.7 %, the shoot biomass by 50.7 % and 62.7 %, the nitrogen content by 76.0 % and 94.9 %, the phosphorus content by 80.3 % and 75.9 %, and the potassium content by 64.0 % and 83.7 % by compared with C and S. Actinobacteria taxa collections further promote nutrient acquisition of wheat. Taken together, our observations from field plots and manipulation of specific bacterial taxa revealed novel soil bacterial legacy effects of previously reared crops on subsequent crops. These new insights open avenues for using soil legacy effects for positive impacts in crop rotation systems.