Abstract
The application of fertilisers incorporated with plant residues improves nutrient availability in soils, which shifts the microbial community structure and favours plant growth. To understand the impact of wheat straw compost fertiliser on soil properties and microbial community structure, tobacco planting soils were treated with four different fertilisers using varied amounts of straw compost fertiliser and a no fertiliser control (CK). Results showed that different fertilisers affected available soil nutrient contents differently. Treatment of tobacco soil with application of combined chemical fertiliser/wheat straw compost led to improved soil chemical properties, and increased soil organic matter and available phosphorus and potassium content. Treatment with FT1 200 kg/mu straw was found to be superior in improving soil fertility. Metagenomic DNA sequencing revealed that different fertiliser treatments resulted in changes in the microbial community composition. In soil treated with FT2 300 kg/mu straw for 60 days, the predominant bacterial phyla were Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, and Verrucomicrobia, whereas Cyanobacteria, Basidiomycota, and Chlorophyta were found in high abundance in soil samples treated with FT1 200 kg/mu straw for 30 days. Functional annotation of metagenomic sequences revealed that genes involved in metabolic pathways were among the most abundant type. PCoA analysis clearly separated the samples containing straw compost fertiliser and chemical fertiliser. A significant correlation between soil properties and the dominant phyla was identified.
Highlights
Environmental soil degradation and production sustainability in different agricultural systems have aroused public concern about soil fertility and quality[1]
Our results showed that the application of wheat straw compost fertiliser had no evident effect on the soil pH, which remained at about 5.7 (Fig. 1a)
Available N content in the soil was decreased with tobacco growth periods, which were regained at 60 days post-transplantation with the FT1 200 kg/mu straw treatment (Fig. 1b)
Summary
Environmental soil degradation and production sustainability in different agricultural systems have aroused public concern about soil fertility and quality[1]. Organic and inorganic amendments, including application of nitrogen fertilisers in combination with straw are returning as recommended approaches to increase the availability of nutrients and improve the yield and quality of plants, including tobacco[8]. Www.nature.com/scientificreports inorganic fertiliser amendments can affect the composition of soil microbial communities[14,15]. These shifts in community composition are likely associated with changes in the functional capabilities of the communities as well. Advances in next-generation DNA sequencing approaches combined with traditional microbiological and chemical analyses of soil parameters may provide a biologically relevant assay to assess the potential effects of fertiliser applications and straw compost amendments on soil microbial communities. Tobacco traits and soil properties were analysed and a metagenomics sequencing approach was undertaken to examine the microbiological profile diversity
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