Winter rye cover cropping changes squash (Cucurbita pepo) phyllosphere microbiota and reduces Pseudomonas syringae symptoms

Abstract Cover cropping is a soil conservation practice that may reduce the impacts of the economically important pathogen Pseudomonas syringae on crops including squash (Cucurbita pepo). To date, no studies have directly quantified the effect of rye cover crops on P. syringae populations, nor on th...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inbioRxiv
Main Authors Maglione, Rémi, Ciotola, Marie, Cadieux, Mélanie, Toussaint, Vicky, Laforest, Martin, Kembel, Steven W
Format Paper
LanguageEnglish
Published Cold Spring Harbor Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press 11.03.2021
Subjects
Biological control
Cover crops
Crops
Cucurbita pepo
Leaves
Microbiota
Pathogens
Phyllosphere
Pseudomonas syringae
Soil conservation
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Summary:Abstract Cover cropping is a soil conservation practice that may reduce the impacts of the economically important pathogen Pseudomonas syringae on crops including squash (Cucurbita pepo). To date, no studies have directly quantified the effect of rye cover crops on P. syringae populations, nor on the bacterial community of squash leaves. In this work, we tested the hypothesis that the protective effects of cover cropping on squash may be mediated by cover cropping effects on the plant’s microbiota that in turn protects against P. syringae. Using combined 16S sequencing and culture-based approaches, we showed that rye cover cropping protects squash against P. syringae, by decreasing pathogen population size on squash leaves and increasing fruit health and marketability at harvest. We also found evidence of a strong effect of rye cover crops on bacterial communities of the squash phyllosphere. Those findings were more striking early in the growing season. Finally, we identified numerous phyllosphere bacteria belonging to the genera Sphingomonas, Methylobacterium and Pseudomonas that were promoted by rye cover crops. Overall, our findings suggest cover cropping is effective for the sustainable management of P. syringae on squash and may provide a reservoir of potential microbial biocontrol agents colonizing the phyllosphere. Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. Footnotes * https://github.com/RemiMaglione/Science-Communication/tree/main/Article/cover-crop-squash-phyllosphere-microbiota-2021 * https://dataview.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/object/PRJNA705113
DOI:10.1101/2021.03.10.434846