The home-field advantage (HFA) hypothesis postulates that plant litter decomposes faster in the home habitat than in other locations (i.e., away site) due to specialized microbial decomposers. However, we still have limited understanding of how specific microbes contribute to HFA. Here, we examined how variation in HFA relates to differences in soil bacterial diversity and interconnections among co-existing

Aluminum (Al) toxicity is a major limiting factor for crop production in acidic soils. The diverse mechanisms by which microbes enhance plant tolerance to Al toxicity, such as Al ion absorption, regulation of metal ion transport, adjustment of rhizosphere pH, filtration of Al ions through mycelial networks, and interaction with root traits, have attracted increasing attention. In this review, we focus

Drought events are becoming more severe and recurrent over Europe. Changes in temperature and rain patterns can affect soil nutrient mobility and availability, modulating the biomass and activity of soil microbial communities. Here, we investigated the effects of drought on extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) and microbial biomass carbon (MBC) and nitrogen (MBN) in differently managed cropping

A field experiment was conducted on a Chinese hickory (Carya cathayensis Sarg.) plantation using two types of hickory husk mulching: fresh and composted husk mulching (FHM and CHM, respectively). Soil samples were collected 90, 180, 270, and 360 days after husk mulching to determine the effects of the treatments on soil nutrients, aggregates, microbial communities, and nutrient cycling-related enzyme

Stimulated microbial nitrification has been reported during grassland degradation when plants and microbes compete for declined nitrogen (N) resources. However, it remains unclear whether inhibiting microbial nitrification would change such competition and alter grassland productivity. Here, we investigated changes induced by the nitrification inhibitor (NI) application in N acquisition strategies

Antibiotic resistance has emerged as a global threat to public health. However, the current information is insufficient to understand how other pollutants, such as fungicides and nanoplastics, affect the spread of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) among bacteria in the soil. Here, our findings revealed that polyethylene nanoplastics (PENPs) prolonged the persistence of pyraclostrobin (PYR) in the

A large fraction of the Mediterranean soils is threatened by losses of organic matter and biodiversity, which could compromise the provision of soil ecosystem services and the stability of ecosystems in the face of climate change. In this work we explore several hypotheses related to the role of C inputs and microbial diversity on soil multifunctionality and its resistance to drought in degraded Mediterranean

Low-light stress has become an important factor limiting crop yield and quality improvement. Appropriate phosphorus (P) addition can enhance soil microbial activity and nutrient availability, thereby alleviating the negative impacts of low-light stress. However, the role of crop rhizosphere microorganisms in the mitigation of low-light stress by P addition in agroecosystems remains unclear. In this

Exudates are the medium through which plants adapt to complex soil environments, however, the mechanisms of how different types of root exudates increase maize yield and phosphorus (P) use efficiency (PUE) throughout the entire growth period remains unknown. In this study, we designed an experiment to examine the effects of continuous addition of exudate substances on maize growth and P uptake over

The immediate responses of soil microbial communities to non-catastrophic typhoon disturbances remain largely unclear, despite soil microorganisms are key contributors to ecosystem functioning and sensitive indicators to forest disturbances. To address this gap, we simultaneously investigated soil microbial communities beneath bamboo forest (BF), Chinese fir forest (CF), secondary broadleaf forest

Measuring bacterial and fungal biomass may offer insights into agroecosystem health. Nevertheless, few studies have directly compared the ability of different methods to assess the abundance of these two microbial groups and their ratio (F/B ratio). This study compared the ability, precision, and repeatability of three commonly used laboratory methods - phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) analysis, quantitative

Many yet undiscovered plant growth-promoting bacteria are proposed to be harboured in the nitrogen-limited boreal forest. These bacteria are suggested to increase plant growth not only due to their ability to fix nitrogen but also through other growth-promoting properties. Therefore, this study looked at the plant growth promotion potential of endophytic bacteria isolated from boreal forest conifer

Denitrification is the key process leading to production and loss of nitrogen gases from soils. Its main drivers are N availability and soil water content, but interactions with other elements, such as carbon and phosphorus, can also influence N2O formation. So far, robust information on the effects of P and the historical context of P addition on N2O sources remains limited. To address this knowledge

The mechanisms by which phosphorus (P) availability regulates the priming effect (PE) induced by the addition of leaf litter with different qualities remain unclear. Here, soil samples from a subtropical Pinus massoniana forest were added with/without P and/or high- and low-quality 13C-labeled leaf litter. The samples were then incubated in the laboratory for 75 days to assess the PE, microbial community

How photosynthetic carbon input regulates the microbial processes involved in carbon incorporation into soil organic carbon (SOC) and its stabilization during grassland degradation remains unclear. We utilized 13C to trace photosynthetic carbon incorporation into SOC and its pools, particulate (POC) and mineral-associated (MAOC) organic carbon, and carbon assimilation by soil microbes across five stages

The current opinion paper aims to revitalize the important methodological approach initiated by Phil Brookes to measure the adenylate energy charge (AEC) of soils, which indicates the energy status of microbial biomass carbon (MBC). Even dormant soil microorganisms maintain high AEC, i.e., (ATP + 0.5 × ADP) / (ATP + ADP + AMP), levels and, thus, rather stable ATP/MBC and adenylate/MBC ratios. New extractants

Foxtail millet is a dietary staple cultivated in arid and semiarid regions worldwide but its sustainable cultivation is strongly restricted by continuous cropping obstacles. Here, we compared the performance of foxtail millet, rhizosphere soil fungi communities under non-continuous cropping, and two and eight years of continuous monocultures (C0, C2, and C8, respectively) to explore the underlying

The depletion of P resources is threatening agricultural sustainability and understanding the mechanisms by which land use change can restore soil health is therefore essential. This study investigated the long-term dynamics of soil phosphorus (P) following the conversion of cropland to grassland in northwestern Spain. The research evaluated how increases in soil organic matter (SOM) have influenced

Comprehensive understanding of how seabird nesting influences island soil ecosystems and the underlying mechanisms remains limited. Here, the response of soil bacterial communities in biodiversity and functions to the changing soil properties induced by seabird nesting were investigated based on a case study on a subtropical, unpopulated island of China. Results showed that seabird nesting increased

Nitrifier denitrification (ND) is recognized as an important pathway for N2O production in agricultural soils, yet its contributions under different moisture contents are poorly quantified. Using an enriched dual isotope (15N − 18O) approach, we estimated N2O production from ND across eight moisture levels (40–120% water-filled pore space, WFPS) in a typical agricultural soil from the North China Plain

Conventional agriculture has been suggested to promote less mutualistic arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF). The main aim of this study was to test this assumption by a detailed functional analysis of the plant mycorrhizal benefits and costs. A cross-inoculation experiment was established with Plantago lanceolata as a host plant and inocula of AMF sourced from four pairs of conventionally managed arable

Denitrification, the microbial process (and its subprocesses) of reducing nitrogenous oxides to gaseous nitrogen, is usually modelled using the relevant scale, i.e. microscopic, laboratory, field, or landscape scale. It is shown that a newly developed model can simulate several experiments with a denitrifying strain of bacteria at the microscopic scale with different initial oxygen and nitrate concentrations

Subtropical forests are significant contributors to N2O emissions with consequences for climate regulation. Biochar application has emerged as a promising strategy to mitigate soil N2O emissions, yet its effects and the underlying mechanisms under nitrogen (N) deposition in subtropical forests remain poorly understood. A comprehensive 3-year field study within a subtropical forest reveals that N deposition

The special issue summarises and highlights key findings of the research unit DASIM funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) on the process of denitrification. Progress was made in several areas including the development of new and advanced methods to quantify N2 fluxes such as a new 15N gas flux method, enhanced Raman spectroscopy and a new incubation system to study plant-soil interactions

Soil microbial nitrogen (N) immobilizations are important processes of biogeochemical cycles. How the soil N immobilizations change with increasing N inputs, especially in the subsoil, is not clear. Based on a long-term field manipulative experiment in an alpine meadow, we evaluated changes of soil gross NH4+ immobilization rate (GAIR) and NO3‒ immobilization rate (GNIR) under six N addition rates

Yield losses caused by Fusarium wilt pose a risk to global food security. Nitrogen fertilizer regime affected the soil bacterial community and could reduce the occurrence of diseases. However, there are unresolved questions regarding the effects of single or combined applications of different nitrogen forms on disease development. Here, using the split-root system, we explored the impact of two forms

Little is known about the path of root-derived carbon (C) into soil microbial communities in response to arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and nitrogen (N) fertilization. A mycorrhiza defective mutant of tomato (reduced mycorrhizal colonization: rmc) and its mycorrhizal wild type progenitor (MYC) were used to control for the formation of AMF. 16-week continuous 13CO2 labeling was performed to quantify

The decomposition of carbon-rich litter in forest ecosystems is thought to regulate critical nutrient cycles, including biological N fixation. However, the dynamics of N fixation and its driving mechanisms during litter decomposition remain elusive. In the present study, we tracked N fixation rate (NFR), diazotrophic community characteristics and associated soil factors during the decomposition of

The acquisition of P and N from soil and their exchange for fixed C are key functions of mycorrhizal fungi in their symbiotic relationship with host plants. Additional contribution to plant nutrition is possible when hyphae proliferate into soil space not directly accessible to plant roots or when they locate nutrient-rich patches more effectively than plant roots. We performed a field-based experiment

Lime application (liming) has historically been used to ameliorate soil acidity in grasslands. Liming effectively improves soil pH, plant productivity, and soil physicochemical properties, but the long-term impact of acidity control by liming on key microbial nitrogen (N)-cycling genes in semi-natural grasslands is unknown. We investigated the effect of 65 years of liming on N-cycling processes in

Understanding the interaction between microbes and soil nutrients during fertilization is crucial for improving plant fruit quality. However, the impact of soil mineral elements, and their interactions with microbial communities on plant performance remain unclear. In this study, we combined fruit and soil mineral analyses with microbial community resistance assessments in an 8-year watermelon continuous

To address the decline in soil organic matter and thus soil life and soil health due to intensive tillage in organic potato production, innovative regenerative farming approaches employ cover crops and transferred dead organic mulch to improve plant nutrition, minimize soil disturbance, and foster soil microbial activity. Starting in 2019 to 2021, three organic two-year field experiments were set up

When imidazolinone herbicides persist longer than intended and remain active in the soil, they can have unknown impacts on soil health. This study investigated the impact of simulated soil residues of an imidazolinone herbicide on shoot dry matter and bacterial communities in the bulk and rhizosphere soil in tolerant and susceptible wheat genotypes, at two different crop growth stages. Four levels

Pursuing sustainable agricultural production necessitates innovative approaches to enhance nutrient use efficiency and mitigate the environmental impact of fertilizer use in cropping systems. Biochar-based controlled-release fertilizers (BCRFs) have emerged as a promising solution to address these challenges. This paper reviews BCRF production methods, nutrient retention mechanisms, and effects on

Drought stress is a key factor limiting crop growth and production. Although a variety of crops can improve their survival and drought resistance as a result of interactions with their rhizosphere microbiota, the mechanisms related to plant–rhizosphere microbiota interactions under drought stress are not fully understood, especially regarding the mechanisms in habitats with droughts. Here, the molecular

Among the long-term sustainable solutions to mitigate saline stress on plants, the use of plant growth promoting microorganisms (PGP) is considered very promising. While most of the efforts have been devoted to the selection and use of bacterial PGPs, little has been proposed with yeast PGP (PGPYs). In this study, three PGPY strains belonging to Naganishia uzbekistanensis, Papiliotrema terrestris and

Disease-resistant wheat cultivars exhibited significantly lower infection rates in field conditions, associated with higher microbial diversity in key compartments such as the rhizosphere soil and phylloplane. Microbial community analysis revealed compartment-specific selection effects, with significant horizontal microbial transfers noted across plant tissues, suggesting a strong compartment-dependent

In this paper a new modeling approach for denitrification and similar processes, which depend on the geochemical gradient between the air-filled larger pores in a soil and a water-filled matrix, is presented. The new modeling approach is capable of taking soil structural properties (obtained e.g. from X-ray CT) into account without requiring a high-resolution simulation. The model approach is explained

Bacillus amyloliquefaciens is a widely used plant growth-promoting rhizobacterium. To investigate its role and mechanisms in selenium (Se) biofortification in crops, a pot experiment with four treatments including no application of Se fertilizer and B. amyloliquefaciens (control), B. amyloliquefaciens application (BA), Se fertilizer application (Se), and combined B. amyloliquefaciens and Se fertilizer

Untreated chicken manure causes a large amount of antibiotics and heavy metals to enter the soil environment. Currently, there is limited research on antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and heavy metal resistance genes (HMRGs) in soil profile. In this study, we conducted a preliminary investigation on the soil profile of vegetable field contaminated by chicken manure. The results showed that the absolute

Little is known about how seedlings sense new soil environments and how the rhizosphere bacteriome changes accordingly. It is important to elucidate these changes to better understand feedbacks that contribute to nutrient cycling and plant fitness. Here, we explored how the tomato rhizosphere bacteriome developed weekly throughout the vegetative developmental stage and with variable nitrogen (N) fertilizer

The recalcitrant nature of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) straw, one of the most abundant agricultural residues, presents challenges for efficient decomposition, limiting nutrient release and organic matter retention in soils. Understanding the effects of tillage practices on wheat straw decomposition and shaping associated microbial communities is essential for enhancing microbial-mediated breakdown

Plants can modify soil properties over time through interactions with soil microorganisms, creating a legacy that may influence subsequent plant growth. This study investigates how soil vegetation covers affect growth and nutrient uptake and phosphorus (P) and nitrogen (N)use efficiencies in two eucalypt species, and the impact of new plant cultivation on soil microbial traits. Using a greenhouse microcosm