Abstract
Tea, a predominant economic crop in China, often thrives on terraced fields, but the long-term monoculture practiced in these terraced tea gardens has led to soil degradation, adversely affecting tea tree growth. Intercropping offers a sustainable solution, but its specific effects on soil and tea trees remain unclear. This study investigated the complex interactions between soil microorganisms, soil, and tea trees in two intercropping systems: tea/ Pueraria montana var. culaishanensis (HWT) and tea/ Melastoma dodecandrum Lour. (YP). The results showed that both intercropping modes significantly improved bud density, hundred-bud weight, and yield, thereby promoting tea tree growth. HWT significantly increased soil porosity, organic matter, available N, and available P in tea garden soils, while YP significantly increased soil porosity, organic matter, available P, and available K, all of which improved soil conditions. Both intercropping modes also affected the diversity and richness of bacterial communities and the community structure at the phylum level. Microbial co-occurrence network and topological characteristics analysis further indicated that the soil microbial community structure under intercropping was more intricate and tightly connected. Linear discriminant analysis effect size analysis demonstrated that beneficial microbial groups were significantly higher under both intercropping modes compared with monoculture tea plantations. Moreover, both intercropping modes promoted the C and N cycles in the soil, significantly enhancing microbial functions related to cellulolysis. In conclusion, both intercropping modes can promote tea tree growth, improve soil physical and chemical properties in tea gardens, increase beneficial microbial groups, and positively affect soil microbial community structure and function. However, HWT has a greater impact on functional microorganisms related to C and N cycles, especially N cycling. Therefore, intercropping with suitable slope-protection crops provides a potential solution for the sustainable development of terraced tea gardens, offering strong support for the construction of green and environmentally friendly tea gardens.
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Claims 9
Claim · model-written summary
Both intercrops increased tea bud density, hundred-bud weight and yield.
- Taxon
- Teat0
- Treatment
- both intercropping modese0
- Outcome
- bud density, hundred-bud weight, and yielde0
- Direction
- improvede0
Not reportedComparator
Verbatim
e0“both intercropping modes significantly improved bud density, hundred-bud weight, and yield”
t0“Tea Plant Growth”
Claim · model-written summary
HWT increased soil porosity, organic matter, available N and available P in tea gardens.
- Taxon
- teae0
- Treatment
- HWTe0
- Outcome
- soil porosity, organic matter, available N, and available Pe0
- Direction
- increasede0
Not reportedComparator
Verbatim
e0“HWT significantly increased soil porosity, organic matter, available N, and available P in tea garden soils”
Claim · model-written summary
YP increased soil porosity, organic matter, available P and available K in tea gardens.
- Taxon
- Teat0
- Treatment
- YPe0
- Outcome
- soil porosity, organic matter, available P, and available Ke0
- Direction
- increasede0
Not reportedComparator
Verbatim
e0“YP significantly increased soil porosity, organic matter, available P, and available K”
t0“Tea Plant Growth”
Claim · model-written summary
Both intercropping systems altered bacterial diversity, richness and phylum-level composition.
- Taxon
- Teat0
- Treatment
- Both intercropping modese0
- Outcome
- diversity and richness of bacterial communities and the community structure at the phylum levele0
Not reportedComparatorDirection
Verbatim
e0“Both intercropping modes also affected the diversity and richness of bacterial communities and the community structure at the phylum level.”
t0“Tea Plant Growth”
Claim · model-written summary
Intercropping made soil microbial networks more intricate and connected.
- Taxon
- Teat0
- Treatment
- intercroppinge0
- Outcome
- soil microbial community structuree0
- Direction
- more intricate and tightly connectede0
Not reportedComparator
Verbatim
e0“soil microbial community structure under intercropping was more intricate and tightly connected”
t0“Tea Plant Growth”
Claim · model-written summary
Beneficial microbial groups were higher with both intercrops than monoculture.
Verbatim
e0“beneficial microbial groups were significantly higher under both intercropping modes compared with monoculture tea plantations”
Claim · model-written summary
Both intercrops promoted soil C and N cycles and microbial cellulolysis functions.
- Taxon
- Teat0
- Treatment
- both intercropping modese0
- Outcome
- C and N cycles in the soil, significantly enhancing microbial functions related to cellulolysise0
- Direction
- promotede0
Not reportedComparator
Verbatim
e0“both intercropping modes promoted the C and N cycles in the soil, significantly enhancing microbial functions related to cellulolysis”
t0“Tea Plant Growth”
Claim · model-written summary
HWT had a greater effect on C- and N-cycle functional microorganisms, especially N cycling.
- Taxon
- Teat0
- Treatment
- HWTe0
- Outcome
- functional microorganisms related to C and N cyclese0
- Direction
- greater impacte0
- Qualifier
- especially N cyclinge0
Not reportedComparator
Verbatim
e0“HWT has a greater impact on functional microorganisms related to C and N cycles, especially N cycling”
t0“Tea Plant Growth”
Claim · model-written summary
The authors recommend suitable slope-protection intercrops for terraced tea gardens.
Verbatim
e0“intercropping with suitable slope-protection crops provides a potential solution for the sustainable development of terraced tea gardens”
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Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.