Responses of Microbiological Soil Properties to Intercropping at Different Planting Densities in an Acidic Andisol

Abstract

Intercropping could increase the capacity of crops to use soil resources. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of lupin/wheat intercropping on soil properties, grain yield and nutrient uptake at different plant densities. Lupin and wheat were grown under field conditions as monocrops and intercrops. Soil nutrient availability and relative abundance of functional genes (acdS, phoD, phoC and nifH) were evaluated. The results obtained indicate that the cropping system had a significant effect (p phoC was more abundant than the alkaline phosphatase gene phoD, which plays a more relevant role in acidic Andisols. The results confirm that N and P mobilization can improve nutrient absorption on wheat. When intercropped, lupin had positive effects on wheat due to its P mobilization capacity, while no effects were observed on lupin.

Keywords

• enzyme activities
• white lupin
• wheat
• facilitation
• nutrient uptake
• volcanic soil