Leaf- and root-associated bacterial communities differ in their resistance and resilience to N disturbance in a temperate steppe.
Guo C, Yang A, Zhang X, Bai W, Zhang W-H
Soil Health
The prairie remnant or native grass meadow near you is quietly negotiating with invisible bacterial communities on every blade and root — and how much nitrogen drifts in from nearby roads and farms determines whether those microbial partnerships hold together or quietly collapse.
Scientists added extra nitrogen (like fertilizer) to a grassland for years, then stopped, and tracked the bacteria living on plant leaves and roots the whole time. Leaf bacteria were easily thrown off-balance by the nitrogen boost and were slow to recover when it stopped — especially the helpful microbes that manage nitrogen cycling. Root bacteria were tougher: they resisted disruption better and bounced back faster, likely because roots store more nitrogen and have physical traits that shelter their microbial communities.
Key Findings
Leaf-associated bacterial communities showed lower resistance to nitrogen enrichment than root-associated communities, with leaf soluble sugars and leaf shape being the main drivers of which bacterial groups changed.
Root-associated bacterial communities showed stronger resilience after nitrogen inputs ceased, linked to higher nitrogen accumulation in roots and root morphology influencing functional bacterial taxa.
Beneficial nitrogen-cycling microbes in the leaf microbiome did not readily recover after nitrogen cessation, while carbon-cycling and restoration-associated microbes in the root microbiome recovered quickly.
chevron_right Technical Summary
A long-term grassland experiment found that bacteria living on leaves are more easily disrupted by nitrogen pollution than bacteria on roots, but root bacteria bounce back faster when nitrogen inputs stop. This asymmetry has implications for how grassland ecosystems recover from nitrogen deposition changes.
Abstract Preview
Enhanced deposition of nitrogen (N) has great impacts on grassland ecosystems. A decline in N deposition has occurred in many regions across the globe. Changes in N deposition alter the structure a...
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