Monoculture-experiment evidence that plant species identity regulates soil biota attributes and soil functions

Description

Understanding how plant species identity modulates soil biota and their functions is a pivotal aspect in plant-soil interactions. In a three-year in situ monoculture experiment conducted on Inner Mongolia grasslands, we examined species identity-driven variations in soil microbe and nematode (biomass, richness, and structure), and soil carbon and nitrogen mineralization rates across 14 distinct plant species from 4 functional groups. Results showed that biomass or abundance of soil biota in annuals and biennials group was higher than that of other functional groups with relatively conservative strategies, but richness of soil biota tended to decrease. Piecewise SEM analysis revealed that effects of plant identity on attributes of soil microbe were mainly related to plant size traits, while effects of plant identity on attributes of nematodes were related to plant size traits and nematode resources. Plant species identity also affected the decomposition of soil organic carbon, with these changes in soil functions directly associated with the attributes of bacteria and fungi and plant size traits. Our findings demonstrate that effects of plant identity on the attributes of multiple functional groups in soil biota are mainly through strong bottom-up cascading effects, providing insight into plant-soil interaction studies from a species-based perspective. These findings will improve our ability to forecast the effects of changes in plant performance and plant community composition caused by future global change on soil biota communities and soil functions in grasslands.

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