Abstract
Intercropping cereals and legumes is a means to reduce fertilizer input in agriculture . Transfer of biologically fixed N often occurs in cereal-legume intercropping and this study aims to understand the mechanism behind. Lupins are legumes of agronomical interest due to their high protein content and effective soil P extraction. However, as lupins are commonly described as non-mycorrhizal the transfer route of N from lupin to barley remains to be elucidated. We investigated the growth and nutrient content of barley intercropped with lupins, to test whether transfer of symbiotically fixed N from lupins to barley occurs, with focus on any role of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi in this transfer. Lupin species and barley were grown in pots (as sole crop or intercropped) ± mesh enclosures restricting mycelial and/or root growth between compartments. Plant growth and AM fungal root colonization were recorded, and plant 15 N natural abundance was measured to determine potential transfer routes of fixed N from lupin to barley. Intercropped treatments showed increased barley growth and N contents, most pronounced if root-root intermingling of the two species was allowed. Also, 15 N natural abundance in plants corroborated N transfer from lupins to barley. As lupin roots remained non-mycorrhizal, even in presence of a mycorrhizal donor plant, hyphal translocation of N was unlikely. We conclude that N transfer from non-mycorrhizal lupins to mycorrhizal barley primarily occurred through bulk flow, stimulated by interspecific root-to-root contact. This may contribute to the success of lupin and barley intercropping.
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Claims 5
Claim · model-written summary
Intercropping increased barley growth, most when roots intermingled.
- Taxon
- barley
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Hordeum vulgaree0 - Treatment
- Intercropped treatmentse0
- Outcome
- barley growthe0
- Direction
- increasede0
- Qualifier
- most pronounced if root-root intermingling of the two species was allowede0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
.jpg?width=500)
Verbatim
e0“Intercropped treatments showed increased barley growth and N contents, most pronounced if root-root intermingling of the two species was allowed.”
Claim · model-written summary
Intercropping increased barley nitrogen content, most when roots intermingled.
- Taxon
- barleyHordeum vulgaree0
- Treatment
- Intercropped treatmentse0
- Outcome
- N contentse0
- Direction
- increasede0
- Qualifier
- most pronounced if root-root intermingling of the two species was allowede0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Intercropped treatments showed increased barley growth and N contents, most pronounced if root-root intermingling of the two species was allowed.”
t0“nitrogen transfer from legume to cereal”
Claim · model-written summary
Plant nitrogen isotope abundance supported nitrogen transfer from lupins to barley.
- Taxon
- barleyHordeum vulgaree0
- Outcome
- N transfer from lupins to barleye0
LupinusOrganisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“15 N natural abundance in plants corroborated N transfer from lupins to barley.”
Claim · model-written summary
Lupin roots remained non-mycorrhizal in the presence of a mycorrhizal donor plant.
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“lupin roots remained non-mycorrhizal, even in presence of a mycorrhizal donor plant”
Claim · model-written summary
The authors inferred that transfer from lupins to barley primarily occurred through bulk flow stimulated by root contact.
- Taxon
- barleyHordeum vulgaree0
- Outcome
- N transfere0
- Qualifier
- through bulk flow, stimulated by interspecific root-to-root contacte0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“N transfer from non-mycorrhizal lupins to mycorrhizal barley primarily occurred through bulk flow, stimulated by interspecific root-to-root contact.”
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See all 11 papers →intercropping · growth · Hordeum vulgare (barley)Positive and negative results
8 papers in the same direction as this paper · 3 in the opposite direction · 2 reporting no difference from an alternative
- no effect
- negative
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See all 14 papers →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.