MYCOLab Ai Logo - gold and army green

Organic and Inorganic Amendments Shape Bacterial Indicator Communities That Can, In Turn, Promote Rice Yield

Summary

Farmers wanting to grow more rice while protecting the environment can benefit from combining chemical fertilizers with mushroom waste. This combination encourages specific beneficial bacteria in the soil that help break down organic matter and make nutrients available to rice plants. The study found that soil health measured through microbial activity is a better predictor of rice harvest than traditional soil chemistry tests, suggesting that managing soil microbes should be a priority for sustainable farming.

Background

Chemical fertilization maintains agricultural yields but causes environmental problems including heavy metal accumulation and soil acidification. Organic amendments are environmentally friendly but less effective than chemical fertilizers. Combined organic and inorganic fertilization is considered ideal but its effects on microbial communities and functions remain poorly understood.

Objective

To evaluate how different fertilization strategies (chemical fertilizers alone, mushroom residues alone, combined chemical and mushroom residues, and no fertilization) affect bacterial community composition, microbial functions, and rice yield in a paddy soil system.

Results

Combined chemical fertilizer and mushroom residue application (MRF) produced the highest rice yield. Soil microbial properties correlated more strongly with rice yield than chemical properties. Ten bacterial indicator taxa, primarily Actinobacteria, were enriched in MRF treatment and associated with xenobiotic biodegradation, amino acid metabolism, and nucleotide metabolism functions.

Conclusion

Organic and inorganic amendments shape specific bacterial indicator communities whose metabolic functions drive soil nutrient cycling and promote crop yield. Soil microbial properties are better indicators of rice productivity than chemical properties, and combined fertilization strategies optimize both soil conditions and crop production.
  • Published in:Microorganisms,
  • Study Type:Field Experiment,
  • Source: PMID: 35208936, DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms10020482
Scroll to Top