TY - JOUR

T1 - The wetter the better?

T2 - Preferences in plant-microbial competition for phosphorus sources in rice cultivation under contrasting irrigation

AU - Wang, Chaoqun

AU - Dippold, Michaela A.

AU - Guggenberger, Georg

AU - Kuzyakov, Yakov

AU - Guenther, Stephanie

AU - Dorodnikov, Maxim

N1 - Funding Information: The authors gratefully acknowledge the China Scholarship Council (CSC) for financial support for Chaoqun Wang. The authors would like to thank Jan Muhr and Marvin Blaue of the Laboratory for Radioisotopes (LARI) of the University of Goettingen for their advice, support, and measurements. We also thank Jake Beyer and Dr. Florian Carstens for constructive advising as well as a technical staff of the Department of Agricultural Soil Science, University of Goettingen, Karin Schmidt, for microbial biomass carbon and nitrogen measurements. This work was supported by the research grant from German Research Foundation (DO 1533/3-1; GU 406/33-1). Michaela Dippold was funded by the Robert Bosch Junior Professorship.

PY - 2024/4

Y1 - 2024/4

N2 - Security in rice production requires solving challenges of water scarcity and phosphorus (P) limitations. Reductive dissolution of ferric (III) iron bound phosphate (Fe–P) and organic P (Porg) mineralization are two understudied P sources for rice plants and microorganisms. Using the new water-saving alternate wetting-drying irrigation should increase Porg mineralization but decrease the Fe–P dissolution and thereby shift the plant and microbial preferences for P sources. Rice biomass increased two-fold under alternate wetting-drying compared to continuous flooding, but the P use efficiency of plants was independent of water regimes. Plants were more competitive for P from Fe–P by Fe(III) reduction, whereas microorganisms preferred straw-derived P (enzymatic hydrolyzation). The high contribution (∼20 %) of P from straw to the P nutrition of rice plants and microorganisms raises the significance of Porg mineralization, e.g. from organic fertilizers. This makes the application of organic P fertilizers highly beneficial to increase rice productivity. Plants took up 62 % more soil-derived P under alternate wetting-drying than under continuous flooding. Accordingly, alternate wetting-drying is a more efficient management to increase the use of soil legacy P and reduce the use of mineral fertilizers compared to continuous flooding.

AB - Security in rice production requires solving challenges of water scarcity and phosphorus (P) limitations. Reductive dissolution of ferric (III) iron bound phosphate (Fe–P) and organic P (Porg) mineralization are two understudied P sources for rice plants and microorganisms. Using the new water-saving alternate wetting-drying irrigation should increase Porg mineralization but decrease the Fe–P dissolution and thereby shift the plant and microbial preferences for P sources. Rice biomass increased two-fold under alternate wetting-drying compared to continuous flooding, but the P use efficiency of plants was independent of water regimes. Plants were more competitive for P from Fe–P by Fe(III) reduction, whereas microorganisms preferred straw-derived P (enzymatic hydrolyzation). The high contribution (∼20 %) of P from straw to the P nutrition of rice plants and microorganisms raises the significance of Porg mineralization, e.g. from organic fertilizers. This makes the application of organic P fertilizers highly beneficial to increase rice productivity. Plants took up 62 % more soil-derived P under alternate wetting-drying than under continuous flooding. Accordingly, alternate wetting-drying is a more efficient management to increase the use of soil legacy P and reduce the use of mineral fertilizers compared to continuous flooding.

KW - Legacy phosphorus

KW - Phosphomonoesterase activities

KW - Phosphorus availability and mobilization

KW - Phosphorus isotopes

KW - Plant-microbial competition

KW - Redox potential

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85184752522&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1016/j.soilbio.2024.109339

DO - 10.1016/j.soilbio.2024.109339

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85184752522

VL - 191

JO - Soil Biology and Biochemistry

JF - Soil Biology and Biochemistry

SN - 0038-0717

M1 - 109339

ER -