Microbial C/N metabolic capabilities contribute to the fate of crop residue N in plant-soil-microbe continuum over multiple seasons
Zhihuang Xie,
Yansheng Li,
Zhenhua Yu,
Guanghua Wang,
Xiaobing Liu,
Caixian Tang,
Junjie Liu,
Judong Liu,
Junjiang Wu,
Stephen J. Herbert,
Jian Jin
Affiliations
Zhihuang Xie
Engineering Research Center of Soil Remediation of Fujian Province University, College of Resources and Environment, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, China; State Key Laboratory of Black Soils Conservation and Utilization, Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Harbin 150081, China
Yansheng Li
State Key Laboratory of Black Soils Conservation and Utilization, Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Harbin 150081, China
Zhenhua Yu
State Key Laboratory of Black Soils Conservation and Utilization, Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Harbin 150081, China
Guanghua Wang
State Key Laboratory of Black Soils Conservation and Utilization, Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Harbin 150081, China
Xiaobing Liu
State Key Laboratory of Black Soils Conservation and Utilization, Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Harbin 150081, China
Caixian Tang
La Trobe Institute for Sustainable Agriculture and Food, Department of Ecological, Plant and Animal sciences, La Trobe University, Melbourne Campus, Bundoora, VIC 3086, Australia
Junjie Liu
State Key Laboratory of Black Soils Conservation and Utilization, Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Harbin 150081, China
Judong Liu
State Key Laboratory of Black Soils Conservation and Utilization, Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Harbin 150081, China
Junjiang Wu
Key Laboratory of Soybean Cultivation of Ministry of Agriculture, Soybean Research Institute, Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150086, China
Stephen J. Herbert
Center for Agriculture, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, USA
Jian Jin
State Key Laboratory of Black Soils Conservation and Utilization, Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Harbin 150081, China; La Trobe Institute for Sustainable Agriculture and Food, Department of Ecological, Plant and Animal sciences, La Trobe University, Melbourne Campus, Bundoora, VIC 3086, Australia; Key Laboratory of Soybean Cultivation of Ministry of Agriculture, Soybean Research Institute, Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150086, China; Corresponding author
Summary: The mineralization of crop residue-nitrogen (N) is important for sustainable N supply to subsequent crops. However, the microbial mechanisms regarding residue-N mineralization over growth seasons are still unclear. We amended 15N-labelled maize and soybean residues to a Mollisol soil and found that, after three growth seasons, soybean plants utilized 43% and 37% of soybean and maize residue-N, respectively. Approximately 10.5% of soybean and 18.6% of maize residue-N were recovered in the labile N pools in soil. Over time, 82% of soybean residue-N was mineralized compared with 66% for maize residue-N. Greater increases in abundances of microbial functional genes involved in organic C decomposition, N mineralization, N2 fixation, and denitrification were observed in the soybean residue compared to the maize residue treatment. The study implies that soybean residue amendment may lower fertilizer N input more effectively than maize residue, considering the N balance between crop demand and soil supply in farming Mollisols.
