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Fanfarillo E, Angiolini C, Tordoni E, Bacaro G, Bazzato E, Castaldini M, Cucu MA, Grattacaso M, Loppi S, Marignani M, Mocali S, Muggia L, Salerni E, Maccherini S. Arable plant communities as a surrogate of crop rhizosphere microbiota. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 895:165141. [PMID: 37379915 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.165141] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2023] [Revised: 06/23/2023] [Accepted: 06/24/2023] [Indexed: 06/30/2023]
Abstract
Soil microbiota is a crucial component of agroecosystem biodiversity, enhancing plant growth and providing important services in agriculture. However, its characterization is demanding and relatively expensive. In this study, we evaluated whether arable plant communities can be used as a surrogate of bacterial and fungal communities of the rhizosphere of Elephant Garlic (Allium ampeloprasum L.), a traditional crop plant of central Italy. We sampled plant, bacterial, and fungal communities, i.e., the groups of such organisms co-existing in space and time, in 24 plots located in eight fields and four farms. At the plot level, no correlations in species richness emerged, while the composition of plant communities was correlated with that of both bacterial and fungal communities. As regards plants and bacteria, such correlation was mainly driven by similar responses to geographic and environmental factors, while fungal communities seemed to be correlated in species composition with both plants and bacteria due to biotic interactions. All the correlations in species composition were unaffected by the number of fertilizer and herbicide applications, i.e., agricultural intensity. Besides correlations, we detected a predictive relationship of plant community composition towards fungal community composition. Our results highlight the potential of arable plant communities to be used as a surrogate of crop rhizosphere microbial communities in agroecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emanuele Fanfarillo
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Siena, Siena, Italy; NBFC, National Biodiversity Future Center, Palermo, Italy.
| | - Claudia Angiolini
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Siena, Siena, Italy; NBFC, National Biodiversity Future Center, Palermo, Italy; BAT Center, Interuniversity Center for Studies on Bioinspired Agro-Environmental Technology, Naples, Italy
| | - Enrico Tordoni
- Institute of Ecology and Earth Sciences, University of Tartu, Tartu, Estonia
| | - Giovanni Bacaro
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy
| | - Erika Bazzato
- Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Cagliari, Cagliari, Italy; Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Sassari, Viale Italia 39, 07100 Sassari, Italy
| | | | - Maria A Cucu
- CREA - Research Center for Agriculture and Environment, Florence, Italy
| | | | - Stefano Loppi
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Siena, Siena, Italy; NBFC, National Biodiversity Future Center, Palermo, Italy; BAT Center, Interuniversity Center for Studies on Bioinspired Agro-Environmental Technology, Naples, Italy
| | - Michela Marignani
- Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Cagliari, Cagliari, Italy
| | - Stefano Mocali
- CREA - Research Center for Agriculture and Environment, Florence, Italy
| | - Lucia Muggia
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy
| | - Elena Salerni
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Siena, Siena, Italy
| | - Simona Maccherini
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Siena, Siena, Italy; NBFC, National Biodiversity Future Center, Palermo, Italy; BAT Center, Interuniversity Center for Studies on Bioinspired Agro-Environmental Technology, Naples, Italy
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