Advanced search
1 file | 930.21 KB Add to list

Nematodes enhance plant growth and nutrient uptake under C and N-rich conditions

Mesfin Tsegaye Gebremikael (UGent) , Hanne Steel (UGent) , David Buchan (UGent) , Wim Bert (UGent) and Stefaan De Neve (UGent)
Author
Organization
Abstract
The role of soil fauna in crucial ecosystem services such as nutrient cycling remains poorly quantified, mainly because of the overly reductionistic approach adopted in most experimental studies. Given that increasing nitrogen inputs in various ecosystems influence the structure and functioning of soil microbes and the activity of fauna, we aimed to quantify the role of the entire soil nematode community in nutrient mineralization in an experimental set-up emulating nutrient-rich field conditions and accounting for crucial interactions amongst the soil microbial communities and plants. To this end, we reconstructed a complex soil foodweb in mesocosms that comprised largely undisturbed native microflora and the entire nematode community added into defaunated soil, planted with Lolium perenne as a model plant, and amended with fresh grass-clover residues. We determined N and P availability and plant uptake, plant biomass and abundance and structure of the microbial and nematode communities during a three-month incubation. The presence of nematodes significantly increased plant biomass production (+9%), net N (+25%) and net P (+23%) availability compared to their absence, demonstrating that nematodes link below- and above-ground processes, primarily through increasing nutrient availability. The experimental set-up presented allows to realistically quantify the crucial ecosystem services provided by the soil biota.
Keywords
FREE-LIVING NEMATODES, microbes, PLFA, nematodes, plants, nitrogen, phosphorous, ARBUSCULAR MYCORRHIZAL FUNGI, PARASITIC NEMATODES, GRASSLAND ECOSYSTEMS, ORGANIC-MATTER, HOST PLANTS, ROOT-GROWTH, SOIL MICROBIAL COMMUNITIES, NITROGEN MINERALIZATION, FEEDING NEMATODES

Downloads

  • Gebremikael et al-2016-Scientific Reports.pdf
    • full text
    • |
    • open access
    • |
    • PDF
    • |
    • 930.21 KB

Citation

Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:

MLA
Gebremikael, Mesfin Tsegaye, et al. “Nematodes Enhance Plant Growth and Nutrient Uptake under C and N-Rich Conditions.” SCIENTIFIC REPORTS, vol. 6, 2016, doi:10.1038/srep32862.
APA
Gebremikael, M. T., Steel, H., Buchan, D., Bert, W., & De Neve, S. (2016). Nematodes enhance plant growth and nutrient uptake under C and N-rich conditions. SCIENTIFIC REPORTS, 6. https://doi.org/10.1038/srep32862
Chicago author-date
Gebremikael, Mesfin Tsegaye, Hanne Steel, David Buchan, Wim Bert, and Stefaan De Neve. 2016. “Nematodes Enhance Plant Growth and Nutrient Uptake under C and N-Rich Conditions.” SCIENTIFIC REPORTS 6. https://doi.org/10.1038/srep32862.
Chicago author-date (all authors)
Gebremikael, Mesfin Tsegaye, Hanne Steel, David Buchan, Wim Bert, and Stefaan De Neve. 2016. “Nematodes Enhance Plant Growth and Nutrient Uptake under C and N-Rich Conditions.” SCIENTIFIC REPORTS 6. doi:10.1038/srep32862.
Vancouver
1.
Gebremikael MT, Steel H, Buchan D, Bert W, De Neve S. Nematodes enhance plant growth and nutrient uptake under C and N-rich conditions. SCIENTIFIC REPORTS. 2016;6.
IEEE
[1]
M. T. Gebremikael, H. Steel, D. Buchan, W. Bert, and S. De Neve, “Nematodes enhance plant growth and nutrient uptake under C and N-rich conditions,” SCIENTIFIC REPORTS, vol. 6, 2016.
@article{8123101,
  abstract     = {{The role of soil fauna in crucial ecosystem services such as nutrient cycling remains poorly quantified, mainly because of the overly reductionistic approach adopted in most experimental studies. Given that increasing nitrogen inputs in various ecosystems influence the structure and functioning of soil microbes and the activity of fauna, we aimed to quantify the role of the entire soil nematode community in nutrient mineralization in an experimental set-up emulating nutrient-rich field conditions and accounting for crucial interactions amongst the soil microbial communities and plants. To this end, we reconstructed a complex soil foodweb in mesocosms that comprised largely undisturbed native microflora and the entire nematode community added into defaunated soil, planted with Lolium perenne as a model plant, and amended with fresh grass-clover residues. We determined N and P availability and plant uptake, plant biomass and abundance and structure of the microbial and nematode communities during a three-month incubation. The presence of nematodes significantly increased plant biomass production (+9%), net N (+25%) and net P (+23%) availability compared to their absence, demonstrating that nematodes link below- and above-ground processes, primarily through increasing nutrient availability. The experimental set-up presented allows to realistically quantify the crucial ecosystem services provided by the soil biota.}},
  articleno    = {{32862}},
  author       = {{Gebremikael, Mesfin Tsegaye and Steel, Hanne and Buchan, David and Bert, Wim and De Neve, Stefaan}},
  issn         = {{2045-2322}},
  journal      = {{SCIENTIFIC REPORTS}},
  keywords     = {{FREE-LIVING NEMATODES,microbes,PLFA,nematodes,plants,nitrogen,phosphorous,ARBUSCULAR MYCORRHIZAL FUNGI,PARASITIC NEMATODES,GRASSLAND ECOSYSTEMS,ORGANIC-MATTER,HOST PLANTS,ROOT-GROWTH,SOIL MICROBIAL COMMUNITIES,NITROGEN MINERALIZATION,FEEDING NEMATODES}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  pages        = {{10}},
  title        = {{Nematodes enhance plant growth and nutrient uptake under C and N-rich conditions}},
  url          = {{http://doi.org/10.1038/srep32862}},
  volume       = {{6}},
  year         = {{2016}},
}

Altmetric
View in Altmetric
Web of Science
Times cited: