Abstract
Intercropping in tea plantations offers multiple ecological and agronomic benefits, directly impacting tea yield and profitability. While most studies on intercropping focus on summer and autumn seasons, the ecological impacts of intercropping during spring remain underexplored. Building on initial findings that tea-rapeseed ( Brassica napus L.) intercropping reduced pest damage in spring, this study explored its broader ecological effects on tea plantations and tea plant development. Results indicated that tea-rapeseed intercropping reduced young shoot damage by Apolygus lucorum by 44.04 %, facilitated by enhanced soil-microbe interactions, modified spectral ecology, and activated defense pathways in tea plants during the profuse flowering period of rapeseed. Specifically, intercropping increased C and N availability in tea rhizosphere soil, boosting organic matter and nitrogen content in the shared ecological zone. This improvement was accompanied by a significant increase in the abundance of nitrogen- and phosphorus-cycling microbial taxa, such as Methylomirabilota , Armatimonadota , and Entotheonellaeota . Moreover, rapeseed intercropping altered canopy reflectance, increasing red-edge and near-infrared spectraand boosting NDVI by 5.97 %. GC-MS analysis revealed upregulated flavonoid biosynthesis and ABC transporters, leading to higher levels of antioxidants and defense compounds in tea shoots. Concurrently, predator populations (spiders, ladybirds, and hoverflies), increased by 5–7 times from rapeseed flowering to pod stages. These findings highlight the ecological and agronomic benefits of tea-rapeseed intercropping in spring, providing a foundation for sustainable tea plantation management and pest control strategies. • Tea-rapeseed intercropping reduced pest damage by 44.04 % in early spring. • Tea canopy reflectance increased in red-edge and near-infrared spectra. • Optimizes rhizosphere microbial communities, enriching key nutrient-cycling taxa. • Key metabolites in tea shoots boosted antioxidants and resistant compounds.
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Claims 9
Claim · model-written summary
Rapeseed intercropping reduced Apolygus lucorum damage to young tea shoots by 44.04%.
- Taxon
- teae0
- Treatment
- tea-rapeseed intercroppinge0
- Interactor
- Apolygus lucorum
%2C_Lentse_Waard%2C_the_Netherlands.jpg?width=60)
Apolygus lucorume0pest - Outcome
- young shoot damage by Apolygus lucorume0
- Direction
- reducede0
- Value
- 44.04 %e0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
%2C_Lentse_Waard%2C_the_Netherlands.jpg?width=500)
Verbatim
t0“tea plantation through rapeseed intercropping”
e0“tea-rapeseed intercropping reduced young shoot damage by Apolygus lucorum by 44.04 %”
Claim · model-written summary
Intercropping increased carbon and nitrogen availability in tea rhizosphere soil.
- Taxon
- teae0
- Treatment
- intercroppinge0
- Outcome
- C and N availability in tea rhizosphere soile0
- Direction
- increasede0
Not reportedComparator
Verbatim
t0“tea plantation through rapeseed intercropping”
e0“intercropping increased C and N availability in tea rhizosphere soil”
Claim · model-written summary
Intercropping increased organic matter and nitrogen content in the shared zone.
- Taxon
- teat0
- Treatment
- rapeseed intercroppingt0
- Outcome
- organic matter and nitrogen contente0
- Direction
- boostinge0
Not reportedComparator
Verbatim
t0“tea plantation through rapeseed intercropping”
e0“boosting organic matter and nitrogen content in the shared ecological zone”
Claim · model-written summary
Intercropping increased nitrogen- and phosphorus-cycling microbial taxa abundance.
- Taxon
- teat0
- Treatment
- rapeseedt0
- Outcome
- abundance of nitrogen- and phosphorus-cycling microbial taxae0
- Direction
- increasee0
Not reportedComparator
Verbatim
t0“tea plantation through rapeseed intercropping”
e0“significant increase in the abundance of nitrogen- and phosphorus-cycling microbial taxa, such as Methylomirabilota , Armatimonadota , and Entotheonellaeota”
Claim · model-written summary
Rapeseed intercropping increased tea canopy red-edge and near-infrared reflectance.
- Taxon
- teat0
- Treatment
- rapeseed intercroppinge0
- Outcome
- red-edge and near-infrared spectrae0
- Direction
- increasinge0
Not reportedComparator
Verbatim
t0“tea plantation through rapeseed intercropping”
e0“rapeseed intercropping altered canopy reflectance, increasing red-edge and near-infrared spectra”
Claim · model-written summary
Rapeseed intercropping boosted tea canopy NDVI by 5.97%.
Not reportedComparator
Verbatim
t0“tea plantation through rapeseed intercropping”
e0“boosting NDVI by 5.97 %”
Claim · model-written summary
Flavonoid biosynthesis and ABC transporters were upregulated in tea shoots.
Verbatim
t0“tea plantation through rapeseed intercropping”
e0“upregulated flavonoid biosynthesis and ABC transporters”
Claim · model-written summary
Tea shoots had higher antioxidant and defense compound levels.
Verbatim
t0“tea plantation through rapeseed intercropping”
e0“higher levels of antioxidants and defense compounds in tea shoots”
Claim · model-written summary
Predator populations increased five- to sevenfold from rapeseed flowering to pod stages.
Verbatim
t0“tea plantation through rapeseed intercropping”
e0“predator populations (spiders, ladybirds, and hoverflies), increased by 5–7 times from rapeseed flowering to pod stages”
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