Special Issue "Advances in Plant-Soil-Microbe Interactions"
A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Plant–Soil Interactions".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2023 | Viewed by 4702
Special Issue Editor
Interests: soil microbiome; microbial ecology; microbial biogeography; plant microbiome; community assembly
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Plants provide niches for the growth and proliferation of a variety of soil microorganisms, such as bacteria, fungi, protists, and viruses, and these microorganisms form a complex co-correlation with plants. Soil microorganisms can give plant hosts health advantages, including growth promotion, nutrient absorption, stress tolerance, and resistance to pathogens. Plants secrete secondary metabolites to recruit soil microorganisms, and rhizosphere microorganisms have the ability to be manipulated or designed to be beneficial to plants due to their co-evolution capabilities. In addition, the environment has a great influence on the genetic, biochemical, and metabolic interactions of the plant–rhizosphere microbial community. Therefore, it is essential to clarify how the interaction between plant–rhizosphere soil–microorganism shapes the assembly of plant-related microbiome and regulates its beneficial properties, such as nutrient acquisition and plant health. It is an important scientific task to reveal the mechanism of plant–rhizosphere soil–microorganism interaction. This Special Issue aims to collect research on plant–soil–microbial interactions, which are related to community assembly, nutrient regulation, secretion of secondary metabolites, and regulation mechanisms.
Dr. Shuo Jiao
Guest Editor
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. Plants is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly 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 2400 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
- plant health
- rhizosphere microorganisms
- promoting growth
- root exudates
- nutrient absorption
- regulation mechanism
Planned Papers
The below list represents only planned manuscripts. Some of these manuscripts have not been received by the Editorial Office yet. Papers submitted to MDPI journals are subject to peer-review.
Title: The Effect of Wool Mulch on Plant Development in the Light of Soil Physical and Soil Biological Conditions
Authors: Andrea Veres; Enikő Papp; Vasileios P. Vasileiadis; Katalin Juhos
Affiliation: Department of Agro-Environmental Studies, Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Villányi str. 29-43, H-1118 Budapest, Hungary; Biodiversity & Agronomy Lead, Sustainable & Responsible Business EAME, Syngenta Crop Protection, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
Abstract: The extreme weather conditions that are lately experienced globally cause severe drought and heat stress for plants in agricultural production. The effect of this stress on plant development depends on abiotic and biotic factors. The solution to this problem can be various soil cover techniques, which help to preserve soil moisture and soil biological activity, thereby increasing crop yield. First, the impact of drought stress on the evapotranspiration (ET) efficiency of sweet pepper plants was tested on soils with different water capacities (clay, sand and peat-based substrate) in greenhouse pot trials. Then the effect of drought on sweet pepper yield (Capsicum annuum L.), biomass and plant- microbiological interactions were tested in semi-field trials. Two drought stress levels were established through wool mulch mats and uncovered control plots and monitored with digital soil moisture and soil temperature sensors. Results showed that at lower stress levels (using wool mulch) plants on clay were more efficient in ET than on sandy soil, however, there was no difference in ET between these two soil types on uncovered plots at higher stress levels. ET was most efficient at lower stress levels on peat which is a substrate with high water capacity and organic matter content. In semi-field trials, a significant difference in soil moisture and soil temperature resulted in smaller pepper bells, reduced plant biomass and symptoms of lack of mineral elements. Microbiological activity measured as active carbon (permanganate oxidizable C) in the soil showed a significant difference due to the level of drought stress independent from the presence of the plant. However, if the plant was present, there was no difference in ß-glycosidase enzyme activity among the treatments. Our results indicate that drought stress and mulching affect both plant performance and soil microorganisms along the season, however, the actual microbiological activity depends on soil-plant-microbial interactions.