Maize/peanut intercropping improves nutrient uptake of side-row maize and system microbial community diversity

• Published in: BMC microbiology Vol. 22; no. 1; p. 14
• Main Authors: Zhao, Xinhua, Dong, Qiqi, Han, Yi, Zhang, Kezhao, Shi, Xiaolong, Yang, Xu, Yuan, Yang, Zhou, Dongying, Wang, Kai, Wang, Xiaoguang, Jiang, Chunji, Liu, Xibo, Zhang, He, Zhang, Zhimeng, Yu, Haiqiu
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England BioMed Central Ltd 07.01.2022; BioMed Central; BMC
• Subjects: 16S/ITS; Agricultural land; Agricultural practices; Agricultural production; Agricultural research; Agriculture - methods; Arachis - growth & development; Arachis - metabolism; Arachis - microbiology; Bacteria; Bacteria - classification; Bacteria - genetics; Bacteria - isolation & purification; Bacteria - metabolism; Biodiversity; Biological diversity; China; Community composition; Composition; Corn; Crop yield; Cropping systems; Crops; Crops, Agricultural - growth & development; Crops, Agricultural - metabolism; Crops, Agricultural - microbiology; Dehydrogenase; Enzymes; Enzymes - analysis; Enzymes - metabolism; Flavonoids; Fungi; Fungi - classification; Fungi - genetics; Fungi - isolation & purification; Fungi - metabolism; Gene expression; Intercropping; Land use; Legumes; Maize; Methods; Microbial colonies; Microbiomes; Microbiota; Microorganisms; Mineralization; Nitrogen; Nitrogen - analysis; Nitrogen - metabolism; Nitrogen content; Nutrient content; Nutrient uptake; Nutrient utilization; Nutrients - analysis; Nutrients - metabolism; Peanut; Peanuts; Peroxidase; Physicochemical properties; Physiological aspects; Production processes; Protease; Proteinase; Rhizosphere; Soil - chemistry; Soil enzyme; Soil Microbiology; Soil microorganisms; Soil properties; Soils; Sole cropping; Sustainable agriculture; Wide-strip intercropping; Zea mays - growth & development; Zea mays - metabolism; Zea mays - microbiology; China; 16S/ITS; Peanut; Nitrogen content; Maize; Wide-strip intercropping; Soil enzyme
• ISSN: 1471-2180; 1471-2180
• DOI: 10.1186/s12866-021-02425-6

Intercropping, a diversified planting pattern, increases land use efficiency and farmland ecological diversity. We explored the changes in soil physicochemical properties, nutrient uptake and utilization, and microbial community composition in wide-strip intercropping of maize and peanut. The results from three treatments, sole maize, sole peanut and intercropping of maize and peanut, showed that intercropped maize had a marginal advantage and that the nutrient content of roots, stems and grains in side-row maize was better than that in the middle row of intercropped maize and sole maize. The yield of intercropped maize was higher than that of sole cropping. The interaction between crops significantly increased soil peroxidase activity, and significantly decreased protease and dehydrogenase activities in intercropped maize and intercropped peanut. The diversity and richness of bacteria and fungi decreased in intercropped maize rhizosphere soil, whereas the richness of fungi increased intercropped peanut. RB41, Candidatus-udaeobacter, Stropharia, Fusarium and Penicillium were positively correlated with soil peroxidase activity, and negatively correlated with soil protease and dehydrogenase activities. In addition, intercropping enriched the functional diversity of the bacterial community and reduced pathogenic fungi. Intercropping changed the composition and diversity of the bacterial and fungal communities in rhizosphere soil, enriched beneficial microbes, increased the nitrogen content of intercropped maize and provided a scientific basis for promoting intercropping in northeastern China.