Summary
The role of soil microorganisms in supporting multiple ecosystem functions (multifunctionality) remains poorly understood across diverse environmental conditions. Here, we investigate 484 soils from 27 European countries spanning a range of climatic and edaphic contexts. We assess the contribution of climate, soil properties, and soil microbiome traits (i.e., the relative abundance of co-occurring taxa) to explain six key functional proxies related to soil structure, biochemical activity, and productivity. We find the highest multifunctionality values in grasslands, woodlands, loamy and acidic soils, and temperate humid regions, and the lowest in croplands, alkaline soils, and drier regions. Soil properties explain 12-31% of variation in multifunctionality, with microbial biomass and nitro
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