Microbiological Attributes and Performance of the Bacterial Community in Brazilian Cerrado Soil with Different Cover Crops

Sebastião Ferreira De Lima,Maria Gabriela De Oliveira Andrade,Antônio Marcos Miranda Silva,Meire Aparecida Silvestrini Cordeiro,Lucymara Merquides Contardi,Mariele Silva Abreu,Cátia Aparecida Simon,Ana Paula Leite De Lima,Eduardo Pradi Vendruscolo,Vinicius Andrade Secco

doi:10.3390/su13158318

Abstract

Soil microbiological indicators are essential tools to understand how the management with cover crops interferes in the activity and the soil microbial community. Thus, the objective of the study was to evaluate microbiological attributes and performance of the bacterial community in the soil of the Brazilian Cerrado with different cover crops. The experiment was performed in a randomized block design, evaluating seven cover crops, Sorghum bicolor, Crotalaria ochroleuca, Pennisetum americanum, Panicum miliaceum, Raphanus sativus, Urochloa brizantha, Urochloa ruziziensis, and a fallow area. Cover aerial biomass dry weight (CB), microbial biomass carbon (MBC), basal soil respiration (BR), metabolic quotient (qCO2), and abundance and structure of bacterial community based on the rrs 16S rRNA gene were evaluated. In the soil cultivated with S. bicolor there was the highest CB and MBC at the same time as there was less microbial activity (lower BR and qCO2). The structure of the bacterial community was more differentiated in soils cultivated with S. bicolor, P. americanum, and C. ochroleuca. The MBC was more associated with cover crops of the Urochloa genus, while BR was positively correlated with S. bicolor. Bacterial abundance was positively correlated with P. miliaceum.

Highlights

IntroductionOne of the main modulators of the microbial community in the soil is pH, which can influence the availability of nutrients
The objective of the work was to evaluate microbiological attributes sensitive to management practices to understand the response of the bacterial community in Brazilian Cerrado soil with different cover crops
The experimental area had been under a no-tillage system for five years, during which the rotation of crops with soybeans/corn was done during the harvest (October to March) and sowing of cover crops in the offseason (March)

Summary

Introduction

One of the main modulators of the microbial community in the soil is pH, which can influence the availability of nutrients. Other attributes, such as soil carbon and organic nitrogen, are essential to the permanence, adaptability, and modulation of the soil microbiome [1]. In this way, the physical, biological, and chemical parameters are strictly related to sustaining soil life and health [2].

Objectives

Methods

Results

Conclusion