Abstract
SummaryLong‐term agricultural fertilization strategies gradually change soil properties including the associated microbial communities. Cultivated crops recruit beneficial microbes from the surrounding soil environment via root exudates. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effects of long‐term fertilization strategies across field sites on the rhizosphere prokaryotic (Bacteria and Archaea) community composition and plant performance. We conducted growth chamber experiments with lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) cultivated in soils from two long‐term field experiments, each of which compared organic versus mineral fertilization strategies. 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing revealed the assemblage of a rhizosphere core microbiota shared in all lettuce plants across soils, going beyond differences in community composition depending on field site and fertilization strategies. The enhanced expression of several plant genes with roles in oxidative and biotic stress signalling pathways in lettuce grown in soils with organic indicates an induced physiological status in plants. Lettuce plants grown in soils with different fertilization histories were visibly free of stress symptoms and achieved comparable biomass. This suggests a positive aboveground plant response to belowground plant–microbe interactions in the rhizosphere. Besides effects of fertilization strategy and field site, our results demonstrate the crucial role of the plant in driving rhizosphere microbiota assemblage.
Highlights
Long-term soil fertilization strategies play a significant role in the alteration of soil biological properties, and may affect soil functioning and quality (Bünemann et al, 2018)
We aimed to investigate the effects of long-term fertilization strategies across field sites on the rhizosphere prokaryotic (Bacteria and Archaea) community composition and plant performance
We conducted growth chamber experiments with lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) cultivated in soils from two long-term field experiments, each of which compared organic versus mineral fertilization strategies. 16S rRNA gene amplicon
Summary
Long-term soil fertilization strategies play a significant role in the alteration of soil biological properties, and may affect soil functioning and quality (Bünemann et al, 2018). While mineral fertilizers are simple molecules that are directly available for plants, organic fertilizers, containing nutrients derived from plant or animal sources (e.g. farmyard manure, compost, digestates or sewage sludge), consist of complex molecules, like humic substances and lignocellulose. These compounds do serve the plants and the soil microbiota as nutrient source and increase the soil organic matter content (Mäder et al, 2002; Liang et al, 2012). The effect of agricultural practices on the soil microbiota is not consistent across published reports and greatly depends on the pedoclimatic context and the overall agricultural strategy applied at the site
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
