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Volume 16
Issue 3
10.3390/min16030333
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Article

Insights into Elemental Migration-Enrichment Patterns and Microbial Communities in Tea Rhizosphere Soils Under Contrasting Lithological Backgrounds

by
Ruyan Li
1,
He Chang
1,*,
Ping Pan
2,
Lili Zhao
3,
Yinxian Song
1,*,
Yunhua Hou
4,
Haowei Bian
1,
Jiayi Gan
1,
Shuai Li
1,
Jibang Chen
1,
Mengli Xie
1,
Kun Long
1,
Wei Zhang
1 and
Weikang Yang
1
1
Faculty of Land Resources Engineering, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650093, China
2
Geomatics Engineering Faculty, Kunming Metallurgy University, Kunming 650033, China
3
College of Economics and Management, Pu’er University, Pu’er 665000, China
4
Kunming Comprehensive Survey Center for Natural Resources, China Geological Survey, Kunming 650111, China
*
Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Minerals 2026, 16(3), 333; https://doi.org/10.3390/min16030333
Submission received: 21 January 2026 / Revised: 18 March 2026 / Accepted: 19 March 2026 / Published: 21 March 2026
(This article belongs to the Section Environmental Mineralogy and Biogeochemistry)
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Abstract

Elemental migration and enrichment are important processes influencing tea plant growth and the assembly of rhizosphere bacterial communities within the rock–soil–plant continuum. This study explores how soil parent materials (granite, quartz schist, and sericite schist) are potentially associated with these processes and their observed associations with the elemental composition of tea leaves. Exploratory statistical analyses revealed distinct, lithology-specific biogeochemical patterns that serve as a foundation for hypothesis generation. In granite soils, chlorite correlated with the mobility of Cr, Pb, Cu, Ni, Mg, and Na, coinciding with shifts in the relative abundances of Verrucomicrobia, Armatimonadetes, and Chloroflexi. In quartz schist, kaolinite exhibited notable correlations with the dynamics of Pb, Cr, Ni, Zn, and As, which were statistically linked to Planctomycetes, Proteobacteria, and Acidobacteria. Complex mineral–microbe interactions were observed in sericite schist soils, where clay minerals (e.g., chlorite, illite) were closely associated with the migration of multiple elements (Pb, K, Ca, Cd, As, Al, Fe, Zn), paralleling structural variations in communities of Actinobacteria, Planctomycetes, Chloroflexi, and Proteobacteria. Potassium (K), calcium (Ca), and manganese (Mn) showed bioaccumulation tendencies in tea leaves across all lithologies, with an enrichment capacity order of Ca > K > Mn > Mg > Na > Al. Exploratory Classification and Regression Tree (CART) analysis suggested that the migration of K, Ca, Cu, Zn, and Hg corresponded most closely with their soil concentrations. Manganese (Mn) exhibited a mineral-associated trend, with kaolinite content as a potential correlate, while cadmium (Cd) migration was statistically linked to the relative abundance of Armatimonadetes. These findings highlight potential candidate relationships between mineralogy, microbes, and elemental mobility rather than confirming causal mechanisms, emphasizing the need for further validation in larger or experimental datasets.
Keywords: Pu-erh tea plantations; bacterial community; trace element; migration; enrichment; rock–soil–plant continuum Pu-erh tea plantations; bacterial community; trace element; migration; enrichment; rock–soil–plant continuum

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MDPI and ACS Style

Li, R.; Chang, H.; Pan, P.; Zhao, L.; Song, Y.; Hou, Y.; Bian, H.; Gan, J.; Li, S.; Chen, J.; et al. Insights into Elemental Migration-Enrichment Patterns and Microbial Communities in Tea Rhizosphere Soils Under Contrasting Lithological Backgrounds. Minerals 2026, 16, 333. https://doi.org/10.3390/min16030333

AMA Style

Li R, Chang H, Pan P, Zhao L, Song Y, Hou Y, Bian H, Gan J, Li S, Chen J, et al. Insights into Elemental Migration-Enrichment Patterns and Microbial Communities in Tea Rhizosphere Soils Under Contrasting Lithological Backgrounds. Minerals. 2026; 16(3):333. https://doi.org/10.3390/min16030333

Chicago/Turabian Style

Li, Ruyan, He Chang, Ping Pan, Lili Zhao, Yinxian Song, Yunhua Hou, Haowei Bian, Jiayi Gan, Shuai Li, Jibang Chen, and et al. 2026. "Insights into Elemental Migration-Enrichment Patterns and Microbial Communities in Tea Rhizosphere Soils Under Contrasting Lithological Backgrounds" Minerals 16, no. 3: 333. https://doi.org/10.3390/min16030333

APA Style

Li, R., Chang, H., Pan, P., Zhao, L., Song, Y., Hou, Y., Bian, H., Gan, J., Li, S., Chen, J., Xie, M., Long, K., Zhang, W., & Yang, W. (2026). Insights into Elemental Migration-Enrichment Patterns and Microbial Communities in Tea Rhizosphere Soils Under Contrasting Lithological Backgrounds. Minerals, 16(3), 333. https://doi.org/10.3390/min16030333

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