Summary
This two-year field study at an operational farm in Northern Germany quantified natural temporal variability in soil microbiota across contrasting tillage and soil texture treatments at fortnightly intervals. The results demonstrate that prokaryotic and fungal communities respond distinctly to soil chemical and environmental drivers, with compositional turnover rates varying by microbial group and soil type, whilst conventional tillage exerted the strongest effect on protist diversity. These findings establish baseline natural variation against which future adverse microbiome effects in croplands can be assessed.
UK applicability
The temporal variation patterns and microbial community responses to soil properties are likely transferable to UK arable systems, particularly in comparable clay and loam soils under similar temperate seasonal regimes. However, UK farms may differ in cropping patterns, climate variability and management practices, requiring site-specific characterisation of natural microbiome baseline variation for effective environmental monitoring.
Key measures
PCR-amplicon analyses of soil DNA for bacterial, archaeal, fungal and protistan (Cercozoa and Endomyxa) abundance and diversity; soil pH, total C and N, C/N ratio, temperature and precipitation; compositional turnover rates; co-occurrence network analysis
Outcomes reported
The study characterised the abundance and diversity of prokaryotic, fungal and protistan communities over two years at two-week intervals across three neighbouring fields differing in soil texture and tillage practice. It identified distinct temporal variations, seasonal and annual effects, and differential responses of microbial groups to soil chemical properties and environmental factors.
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