Pulse Brain · Growing Health Evidence Index
Tier 3 — Observational / field trialPeer-reviewed

Harnessing the legacy effect of soil microbiome in organic manure application for better crop performance and greenhouse gas emission

Zewen Hei, Xue Liu, Yuxuan Niu, Shenglei Hao, Geng Sun, Hongyan Zhang, Hangwei Hu, Yongliang Chen

Plant and Soil · 2026

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Summary

This field study examines how the legacy effects of soil microbiome composition influence crop performance and greenhouse gas emissions following organic manure application. The research suggests that historical soil microbial communities may modulate the effectiveness of organic amendments for both crop productivity and climate-relevant emissions. The findings contribute to understanding how microbial ecology underpins the sustainability of organic farming systems.

UK applicability

The mechanistic insights on soil microbiome-manure interactions are relevant to UK organic and regenerative farming contexts, though UK soil types, climates, and microbial communities differ from the likely study location (China), necessitating local validation before broad application to UK advisory recommendations.

Key measures

Crop yield or biomass; greenhouse gas emissions (likely CO₂, CH₄, N₂O); soil microbiome composition; soil microbial activity

Outcomes reported

The study likely examined crop performance metrics and greenhouse gas emissions in response to organic manure application, with particular attention to how prior soil microbiome composition influences these outcomes.

Theme
Farming systems, soils & land use
Subject
Soil biology & microbiology
Study type
Research
Study design
Field trial
Source type
Peer-reviewed study
Status
Published
Geography
China
System type
Organic systems
DOI
10.1007/s11104-025-08192-x
Catalogue ID
SNmoqqt66j-4ffmkg

Topic tags

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