IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jagris/v14y2024i12p2327-d1547375.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Diversified Cropping of Grains and Atractylodes lancea (Thunb.) DC. Enhances Ecological Benefits of Agroecosystems

Author

Listed:
  • Enze Wang

    (State Key Laboratory of Black Soils Conservation and Utilization, Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130102, China
    University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China)

  • Yu Sun

    (State Key Laboratory of Black Soils Conservation and Utilization, Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130102, China)

  • Ming Li

    (College of Geographic Sciences, Changchun Normal University, Changchun 130032, China)

  • Libo Ye

    (Key Laboratory of Straw Comprehensive Utilization and Black Soil Conservation, Ministry of Education, School of Resources and Environment, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun 130117, China)

  • Xinyi Yu

    (School of Ecology and Environment, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu 241000, China)

  • Zongmu Yao

    (State Key Laboratory of Black Soils Conservation and Utilization, Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130102, China
    University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China)

  • Chunjie Tian

    (State Key Laboratory of Black Soils Conservation and Utilization, Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130102, China
    Key Laboratory of Straw Comprehensive Utilization and Black Soil Conservation, Ministry of Education, School of Resources and Environment, Jilin Agricultural University, Changchun 130117, China)

Abstract

Crop diversification is pivotal in sustainable agriculture, influencing soil microbial communities and soil nutrient cycling functions. Yet, the impacts of incorporating medicinal plants into crop diversification strategies on the functional characteristics of these microbial communities remain understudied. This research elucidates the benefits of diversified cropping systems by assessing soil nutrient content, diversity and composition of soil microorganisms, the abundance of functional genes involved in carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) cycling, and overall agricultural productivity; collectively referred to as ecological benefits. The experimental design included four treatment groups: (1) continuous maize ( Zea mays L.) cultivation (MC); (2) maize– A. lancea ( Atractylodes lancea Thunb.) intercropping (MA); (3) maize–sorghum ( Sorghum bicolor L.) rotation (MS); and (4) maize– A. lancea intercropping combined with sorghum rotation (MSA). Findings indicate that diversified cropping treatments significantly enhance the alpha diversity of soil bacterial communities over fungal communities. NH 4 + and NO 3 − predominantly influence the composition of soil bacterial communities, with a notable increase in the relative abundance of Acidobacteriota, Gemmatimonadota, and Chloroflexi. Compared to MC treatment, the MA and MSA treatments significantly increased the abundance of C (121.44%, 294.26%), N (206.57%, 294.26%), and P (112.02%, 225.84%) cycling genes. The inverse variance weighting evaluation demonstrates that, compared to the MC treatment, the MS (5.34) and MSA (8.15) treatments significantly boost soil ecological benefits. Overall, diversifying the cultivation of A. lancea with grains can enhance the ecological benefits of the soil. This study offers new perspectives on diversified planting, particularly in terms of species selection and practical combinations on farmland.

Suggested Citation

  • Enze Wang & Yu Sun & Ming Li & Libo Ye & Xinyi Yu & Zongmu Yao & Chunjie Tian, 2024. "Diversified Cropping of Grains and Atractylodes lancea (Thunb.) DC. Enhances Ecological Benefits of Agroecosystems," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 14(12), pages 1-19, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jagris:v:14:y:2024:i:12:p:2327-:d:1547375
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/14/12/2327/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/14/12/2327/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Michael Chappell & Liliana LaValle, 2011. "Food security and biodiversity: can we have both? An agroecological analysis," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 28(1), pages 3-26, February.
    2. Richard D. Bardgett & Wim H. van der Putten, 2014. "Belowground biodiversity and ecosystem functioning," Nature, Nature, vol. 515(7528), pages 505-511, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. José Camilo Bedano & Anahí Domínguez, 2016. "Large-Scale Agricultural Management and Soil Meso- and Macrofauna Conservation in the Argentine Pampas," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 8(7), pages 1-25, July.
    2. Fábio T. F. Silva & Alexandre Szklo & Amanda Vinhoza & Ana Célia Nogueira & André F. P. Lucena & Antônio Marcos Mendonça & Camilla Marcolino & Felipe Nunes & Francielle M. Carvalho & Isabela Tagomori , 2022. "Inter-sectoral prioritization of climate technologies: insights from a Technology Needs Assessment for mitigation in Brazil," Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, Springer, vol. 27(7), pages 1-39, October.
    3. Hannah Romanowski & Lauren Blake, 2023. "Neonicotinoid seed treatment on sugar beet in England: a qualitative analysis of the controversy, existing policy and viability of alternatives," Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, Springer;Association of Environmental Studies and Sciences, vol. 13(3), pages 453-472, September.
    4. Imen Turki Abdelhedi & Sonia Zouari Zouari, 2020. "Agriculture and Food Security in North Africa: a Theoretical and Empirical Approach," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 11(1), pages 193-210, March.
    5. Paul L. G. Vlek & Asia Khamzina & Hossein Azadi & Anik Bhaduri & Luna Bharati & Ademola Braimoh & Christopher Martius & Terry Sunderland & Fatemeh Taheri, 2017. "Trade-Offs in Multi-Purpose Land Use under Land Degradation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(12), pages 1-19, November.
    6. Yinhong Hu & Weiwei Yu & Bowen Cui & Yuanyuan Chen & Hua Zheng & Xiaoke Wang, 2021. "Pavement Overrides the Effects of Tree Species on Soil Bacterial Communities," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(4), pages 1-11, February.
    7. Théodore Nikiema & Eugène C. Ezin & Sylvain Kpenavoun Chogou, 2023. "Bibliometric Analysis of the State of Research on Agroecology Adoption and Methods Used for Its Assessment," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(21), pages 1-18, November.
    8. Julie Sardos & Sara Muller & Marie-France Duval & Jean-Louis Noyer & Vincent Lebot, 2016. "Root crops diversity and agricultural resilience: a case study of traditional agrosystems in Vanuatu (Oceania)," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 33(3), pages 721-736, September.
    9. Angela Yaneth Landínez-Torres & Jessika Lucia Becerra Abril & Solveig Tosi & Lidia Nicola, 2020. "Soil Microfungi of the Colombian Natural Regions," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(22), pages 1-28, November.
    10. Zegar, Józef S., 2012. "Gospodarstwa Rodzinne Wobec Wyzwań Wyżywienia I Ochrony Środowiska – Ujęcie Globalne," Village and Agriculture (Wieś i Rolnictwo), Polish Academy of Sciences (IRWiR PAN), Institute of Rural and Agricultural Development, vol. 4(157).
    11. Anita Zapałowska & Andrzej Skwiercz & Dawid Kozacki & Czesław Puchalski, 2024. "Employing Plant Parasitic Nematodes as an Indicator for Assessing Advancements in Landfill Remediation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(10), pages 1-17, May.
    12. Chen Ma & Runze Nie & Guoming Du, 2023. "Responses of Soil Collembolans to Land Degradation in a Black Soil Region in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(6), pages 1-13, March.
    13. Anna Kocira & Mariola Staniak & Marzena Tomaszewska & Rafał Kornas & Jacek Cymerman & Katarzyna Panasiewicz & Halina Lipińska, 2020. "Legume Cover Crops as One of the Elements of Strategic Weed Management and Soil Quality Improvement. A Review," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 10(9), pages 1-41, September.
    14. Dina in ‘t Zandt & Zuzana Kolaříková & Tomáš Cajthaml & Zuzana Münzbergová, 2023. "Plant community stability is associated with a decoupling of prokaryote and fungal soil networks," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-14, December.
    15. Rau, Anna-Lena & von Wehrden, Henrik & Abson, David J., 2018. "Temporal Dynamics of Ecosystem Services," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 151(C), pages 122-130.
    16. Wojciech Bierza & Joanna Czarnecka & Agnieszka Błońska & Agnieszka Kompała-Bąba & Agnieszka Hutniczak & Bartosz Jendrzejek & Jawdat Bakr & Andrzej M. Jagodziński & Dariusz Prostański & Gabriela Woźnia, 2023. "Plant Diversity and Species Composition in Relation to Soil Enzymatic Activity in the Novel Ecosystems of Urban–Industrial Landscapes," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(9), pages 1-18, April.
    17. Qiuju Wang & Xin Liu & Jingyang Li & Xiaoyu Yang & Zhenhua Guo, 2021. "Straw application and soil organic carbon change: A meta-analysis," Soil and Water Research, Czech Academy of Agricultural Sciences, vol. 16(2), pages 112-120.
    18. Carrie Furman & Carla Roncoli & Donald Nelson & Gerrit Hoogenboom, 2014. "Growing food, growing a movement: climate adaptation and civic agriculture in the southeastern United States," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 31(1), pages 69-82, March.
    19. Jonas Inkotte & Barbara Bomfim & Márcio Gonçalves da Rosa & Marco Bruno Xavier Valadão & Alcides Gatto & Juscelina Arcanjo Santos & Reginaldo Sergio Pereira, 2024. "Changes in Land Use through Eucalyptus Plantations Impact Soil Fauna Communities in Brazilian Savannas," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(7), pages 1-14, April.
    20. Fischer, Joern & Abson, David J. & Butsic, Van & Chappell, M. Jahi & Ekroos, Johan & Hanspach, Jan & Kuemmerle, Tobias & Smith, Henrik G. & von Wehrden, Henrik, 2014. "Land sparing versus land sharing: Moving forward," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, vol. 7(3), pages 149-157.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jagris:v:14:y:2024:i:12:p:2327-:d:1547375. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.