Effect of Different Fertilization Practices on Soil Microbial Community in a Wheat–Maize Rotation System

Yunlong Zhang, Tengteng Li, Honghui Wu, Shuikuan Bei, Junling Zhang and Xiaolin Li
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Yunlong Zhang: National Hulunber Grassland Ecosystem Observation and Research Station, Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
Tengteng Li: College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
Honghui Wu: Ministry of Agriculture Key Laboratory of Crop Nutrition and Fertilization, Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
Shuikuan Bei: College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
Junling Zhang: College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China
Xiaolin Li: College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 11, issue 15, 1-11

Abstract: Little information is known about the effects of different fertilization practices on soil microbiome in intensively managed crop rotations. The objective of this research was to investigate the response of microbial community composition (phospholipid fatty acid, PLFA) and extracellular enzyme activity to fertilization treatments through a three-year experiment. Treatments were: Control (without fertilizer, CK), chemical fertilizer (NPK), NPK + pig manure (NPKM), NPK + straw (NPKS), and NPK + both manure and straw (NPKMS). We found that fertilization had no effect on the microbial abundance except arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) PLFA. Soil microbial community composition was significantly affected by crop species and to a lesser extent by fertilization, with a greater influence on the wheat harvest. In addition, soil enzyme activities were enhanced by fertilization, especially in wheat season. Over three years, compared with NPK treatment, addition of organic manure or straw (NPKS and NPKMS) significantly increased the activities of the enzymes except invertase and urease, and the effect was greater at wheat harvest than the maize harvest. Our results indicate that the response of soil microbial community structure and enzyme activities to fertilization takes precedence than microbial biomass in the short term. The temporal variation in soil microbial community structure and enzyme activities in the crop rotation indicate that crop species may be carefully considered for sustainable agricultural intensification management.

Keywords: manure; wheat–maize; microbial community structure; enzyme activity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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