Effects of plant-soil feedbacks on the invasion and competitiveness of Aegilops tauschii

Abstract

The interaction between plants and soil is an important aspect that affects the invasive ability of foreign plants and the invasiveness of ecosystems. The study on plant soil feedback of A. tauschii can provide reference for its invasion mechanism. Firstly, the effects of A. tauschii on the nutrients and enzyme activities of invaded soil were investigated; Secondly, in conjunction with soil sterilization, pot experiments were conducted using the De Wit substitution method to investigate the impact of different degree invasive soils on the development of A. tauschii and its interaction with wheat. The results showed that the invasion of A. tauschii significantly increased soil organic matter, soluble phosphorus and soluble potassium, while also causing a significant decrease in the concentration of nitrate nitrogen. And according to the changes of morphological and biomass indicators of A. tauschii, the results of two-way ANOVAs showed that the invaded soil and its microbiota have a positive feedback effect on the growth of A. tauschii. Finally, it can be seen from the value of the competition balance index, the competition ability of A. tauschii in different invasion degree soil is greater than that of wheat whether the soil invaded by A. tauschii had undergone sterilization treatment or not. In conclusion, the invasion potential of A. tauschii is not only derived from its strong competitiveness, but also may be related to the soil conditions.

Keywords

• Aegilops tauschii
• competitiveness
• plant soil feedback
• plant height
• soil sterilization
• total biomass