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Plant species richness, identity and productivity differentially influence key groups of microbes in grassland soils of contrasting fertility

Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review

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Plant species richness, identity and productivity differentially influence key groups of microbes in grassland soils of contrasting fertility. / De Deyn, Gerlinde; Quirk, Helen; Bardgett, Richard.
In: Biology Letters, Vol. 7, No. 1, 23.02.2011, p. 75-78.

Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review

Harvard

De Deyn, G, Quirk, H & Bardgett, R 2011, 'Plant species richness, identity and productivity differentially influence key groups of microbes in grassland soils of contrasting fertility', Biology Letters, vol. 7, no. 1, pp. 75-78. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2010.0575

APA

De Deyn, G., Quirk, H., & Bardgett, R. (2011). Plant species richness, identity and productivity differentially influence key groups of microbes in grassland soils of contrasting fertility. Biology Letters, 7(1), 75-78. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2010.0575

Vancouver

De Deyn G, Quirk H, Bardgett R. Plant species richness, identity and productivity differentially influence key groups of microbes in grassland soils of contrasting fertility. Biology Letters. 2011 Feb 23;7(1):75-78. doi: 10.1098/rsbl.2010.0575

Author

De Deyn, Gerlinde ; Quirk, Helen ; Bardgett, Richard. / Plant species richness, identity and productivity differentially influence key groups of microbes in grassland soils of contrasting fertility. In: Biology Letters. 2011 ; Vol. 7, No. 1. pp. 75-78.

Bibtex

@article{a16fbb80be5a46f896d9c8e5dc5d13d5,
title = "Plant species richness, identity and productivity differentially influence key groups of microbes in grassland soils of contrasting fertility",
abstract = "The abundance of microbes in soil is thought to be strongly influenced by plant productivity rather than by plant species richness per se. However, whether this holds true for different microbial groups and under different soil conditions is unresolved. We tested how plant species richness, identity and biomass influence the abundances of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), saprophytic bacteria and fungi, and actinomycetes, in model plant communities in soil of low and high fertility using phospholipid fatty acid analysis. Abundances of saprophytic fungi and bacteria were driven by larger plant biomass in high diversity treatments. In contrast, increased AMF abundance with larger plant species richness was not explained by plant biomass, but responded to plant species identity and was stimulated by Anthoxantum odoratum. Our results indicate that the abundance of saprophytic soil microbes is influenced more by resource quantity, as driven by plant production, while AMF respond more strongly to resource composition, driven by variation in plant species richness and identity. This suggests that AMF abundance in soil is more sensitive to changes in plant species diversity per se and plant species composition than are abundances of saprophytic microbes.",
keywords = "AMF , biodiversity , soil , ecosystem functioning, grassland , phospholipid fatty acid",
author = "{De Deyn}, Gerlinde and Helen Quirk and Richard Bardgett",
year = "2011",
month = feb,
day = "23",
doi = "10.1098/rsbl.2010.0575",
language = "English",
volume = "7",
pages = "75--78",
journal = "Biology Letters",
issn = "1744-9561",
publisher = "Royal Society of London",
number = "1",

}

RIS

TY - JOUR

T1 - Plant species richness, identity and productivity differentially influence key groups of microbes in grassland soils of contrasting fertility

AU - De Deyn, Gerlinde

AU - Quirk, Helen

AU - Bardgett, Richard

PY - 2011/2/23

Y1 - 2011/2/23

N2 - The abundance of microbes in soil is thought to be strongly influenced by plant productivity rather than by plant species richness per se. However, whether this holds true for different microbial groups and under different soil conditions is unresolved. We tested how plant species richness, identity and biomass influence the abundances of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), saprophytic bacteria and fungi, and actinomycetes, in model plant communities in soil of low and high fertility using phospholipid fatty acid analysis. Abundances of saprophytic fungi and bacteria were driven by larger plant biomass in high diversity treatments. In contrast, increased AMF abundance with larger plant species richness was not explained by plant biomass, but responded to plant species identity and was stimulated by Anthoxantum odoratum. Our results indicate that the abundance of saprophytic soil microbes is influenced more by resource quantity, as driven by plant production, while AMF respond more strongly to resource composition, driven by variation in plant species richness and identity. This suggests that AMF abundance in soil is more sensitive to changes in plant species diversity per se and plant species composition than are abundances of saprophytic microbes.

AB - The abundance of microbes in soil is thought to be strongly influenced by plant productivity rather than by plant species richness per se. However, whether this holds true for different microbial groups and under different soil conditions is unresolved. We tested how plant species richness, identity and biomass influence the abundances of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), saprophytic bacteria and fungi, and actinomycetes, in model plant communities in soil of low and high fertility using phospholipid fatty acid analysis. Abundances of saprophytic fungi and bacteria were driven by larger plant biomass in high diversity treatments. In contrast, increased AMF abundance with larger plant species richness was not explained by plant biomass, but responded to plant species identity and was stimulated by Anthoxantum odoratum. Our results indicate that the abundance of saprophytic soil microbes is influenced more by resource quantity, as driven by plant production, while AMF respond more strongly to resource composition, driven by variation in plant species richness and identity. This suggests that AMF abundance in soil is more sensitive to changes in plant species diversity per se and plant species composition than are abundances of saprophytic microbes.

KW - AMF

KW - biodiversity

KW - soil

KW - ecosystem functioning

KW - grassland

KW - phospholipid fatty acid

U2 - 10.1098/rsbl.2010.0575

DO - 10.1098/rsbl.2010.0575

M3 - Journal article

VL - 7

SP - 75

EP - 78

JO - Biology Letters

JF - Biology Letters

SN - 1744-9561

IS - 1

ER -