Summary
This narrative review synthesises research on the phyllosphere—the leaf surface microbial habitat—examining the ecological and evolutionary processes that structure hyperdiverse microbial communities and their consequences for plant and ecosystem function. The authors integrate recent evolutionary community ecology frameworks to explain how dispersal, diversification, selection, and drift interact with plant host factors and environmental conditions to shape phyllosphere assemblages. Evidence suggests that global environmental changes are altering these communities with potential implications for plant adaptation and ecosystem resilience.
Regional applicability
The review is geographically non-specific and addresses fundamental ecological processes occurring on plant leaf surfaces globally. Findings are applicable to United Kingdom agricultural and natural systems, though specific quantitative outcomes would require field validation in temperate maritime conditions.
Key measures
Phyllosphere microbial community composition, diversity, and functional traits; plant fitness and ecosystem functions including nutrient and water cycling; effects of host plant characteristics, atmospheric conditions, and microbial interactions.
Outcomes reported
The review synthesises evidence on how phyllosphere microbial communities are shaped by dispersal, evolutionary diversification, selection, and drift processes, and examines how global environmental changes alter these communities with cascading effects on plant performance and ecosystem functioning.
Supporting research
Author-hosted exact published phyllosphere review discusses fungicide-treated apple orchards, crop pathogens and future crop-breeding/microbiome applications to agricultural productivity and resilience.
Limits: Supporting ecological/microbial synthesis, not a farm-yield intervention trial. Selected full-text sections and summary were inspected; no certification of all cited methods or causal effect validity.
Topic tags
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