Open Access

ARTICLE

Response of Bacterial Community and Enzyme Activity of Greenhouse Tomato under Different Irrigation Systems

by Haijian Yang¹, Mingzhi Zhang^1,*, Na Xiao¹, Yuan Li²

1 Faculty of Engineering, Huanghe Science and Technology University, Zhengzhou, 450063, China
2 Northwest Land and Resources Research Center, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi’an, 710119, China

* Corresponding Author: Mingzhi Zhang. Email:

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany 2024, 93(7), 1543-1568. https://doi.org/10.32604/phyton.2024.050915

Received 22 February 2024; Accepted 24 May 2024; Issue published 30 July 2024

Abstract

The micro-sprinkler irrigation mulched (MSM) has been suggested as a novel water-saving approach in controlled environment agriculture. However, the effects of microbial community structure and enzyme activity in the rhizosphere soil on crop growth under MSM remain unclear. This study conducted a randomized experimental design using greenhouse tomatoes to investigate changes in bacterial community structure and enzyme activity in rhizosphere soil under different irrigation frequencies (F) and amounts (I) of MSM. The findings revealed that with the increase of F or I, The total count of soil bacteria in tomatoes first rose and then fell in terms of Operational Taxonomic Units (OTUs) classification. Compared to other F, the most abundance of nitrogen and phosphorus metabolism genes and enzyme activities were observed with a 5-day F. Moreover, the diversity of soil bacterial community structure initially rose before eventually declining with the increase of the I. Applying 1.00 Epan (cumulative evaporation of a 20 cm standard pan) under MSM helped boost the abundance of nitrogen and phosphorus metabolism functional genes in soil bacteria, ensuring higher enzyme activities related to nitrogen, carbon, and phosphorus metabolism in the rhizosphere soil of tomatoes. Tomatoes’ yield initially rose before eventually declining with the increase in F or I, whereas I had a more significant effect on yield. A 1.00% increase in I yielded a minimum of 39.24% increase in tomato yield. The study showed a positive correlation between soil bacterial community, soil enzyme activity, and greenhouse tomato yield under MSM. Considering the results comprehensively, the combined irrigation mode of F of 5 d and I of 1.00 Epan was recommended for greenhouse tomatoes under MSM. This conclusion provides theoretical support for water-saving practices and yield improvement in facility agriculture, especially tomato cultivation.

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Keywords

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