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Agronomy
Special Issues
Utilization of Microorganisms for Sustainable Agricultural Development
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Utilization of Microorganisms for Sustainable Agricultural Development

A special issue of Agronomy (ISSN 2073-4395). This special issue belongs to the section "Farming Sustainability".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2025 | Viewed by 100

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Huawen Han

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Centre for Grassland Microbiome, State Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-Ecosystems, College of Pastoral Agricultural Science and Technology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China
Interests: exploitation and utilization of microbial resources; engineering synthetic microbial consortia
Prof. Dr. Tuo Yao

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Key Laboratory of Grass Ecosystem, Ministry of Education, College of Grassland Science, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou 730070, China
Interests: exploitation and utilization of microbial resources; microbial inoculants

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue, "Utilization of Microorganisms for Sustainable Agricultural Development”, delves into the critical role of microorganisms in driving sustainable agricultural practices, showcasing groundbreaking research and innovative applications harnessing the power of diverse microbial communities to enhance soil fertility, promote plant health, and optimize agricultural productivity while minimizing environmental impact.

Microbes, including bacteria, fungi, and algae, are central to the sustainability of agriculture, serving as biofertilizers and biocontrol agents that offer eco-friendly alternatives to chemical inputs. The issue underscores the importance of microbial diversity in maintaining soil health and ecosystem balance, emphasizing the intricate relationships between microorganisms and plants in agricultural systems. Furthermore, this Special Issue explores novel strategies for utilizing microorganisms in bioremediation and waste management, showcasing their potential to remediate polluted environments, degrade contaminants, and promote sustainable waste recycling practices within the agricultural sector. By highlighting the multifaceted contributions of microorganisms to sustainable agriculture, this issue advocates for a holistic and environmentally conscious approach to agricultural development, paving the way for a more resilient and resource-efficient agricultural future.

Dr. Huawen Han
Prof. Dr. Tuo Yao
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Agronomy is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • microorganism
  • sustainable agriculture
  • soil health
  • environmental impact

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

21 pages, 5984 KiB  
Article
Potassium Fulvate Alleviates Salinity and Boosts Oat Productivity by Modifying Soil Properties and Rhizosphere Microbial Communities in the Saline–Alkali Soils of the Qaidam Basin
by Jie Wang, Xin Jin, Xinyue Liu, Yunjie Fu, Kui Bao, Zhixiu Quan, Chengti Xu, Wei Wang, Guangxin Lu and Haijuan Zhang
Agronomy 2025, 15(7), 1673; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy15071673 - 10 Jul 2025
Abstract
Soil salinization severely limits global agricultural sustainability, particularly across the saline–alkaline landscapes of the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau. We examined how potassium fulvate (PF) modulates oat (Avena sativa L.) performance, soil chemistry, and rhizospheric microbiota in the saline–alkaline soils of the Qaidam Basin. PF [...] Read more.
Soil salinization severely limits global agricultural sustainability, particularly across the saline–alkaline landscapes of the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau. We examined how potassium fulvate (PF) modulates oat (Avena sativa L.) performance, soil chemistry, and rhizospheric microbiota in the saline–alkaline soils of the Qaidam Basin. PF markedly boosted shoot and root biomass, with the greatest response observed at 150 kg hm−2. At the same time, it enhanced soil fertility by increasing organic matter, nitrate-N, ammonium-N, and available potassium, and improved ionic balance by lowering Na+ concentrations and the sodium adsorption ratio (SAR), while increasing Ca2+ levels and soil moisture content. Under the high-dose treatment (F2), endogenous fungal contributions declined sharply, exogenous replacements increased, and fungal α-diversity fell; multivariate ordinations confirmed that PF reshaped both bacterial and fungal communities, with fungi exhibiting the stronger response. We integrated three machine learning algorithms—least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO), Random Forest (RF), and eXtreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost)—to minimize the bias inherent in any single method. We identified microbial β-diversity, organic matter, and Na+ and Ca2+ concentrations as the most robust predictors of the Soil Salinization and Alkalization Index (SSAI). Structural equation modeling further showed that PF mitigates salinity chiefly by improving soil physicochemical properties (path coefficient = −0.77; p < 0.001), with microbial assemblages acting as key intermediaries. These findings provide compelling theoretical and empirical support for deploying PF to rehabilitate saline–alkaline soils in alpine environments and offer practical guidance for sustainable land management in the Qaidam Basin. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Utilization of Microorganisms for Sustainable Agricultural Development)
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