Abstract
Legume productivity depends on biotic interactions above and below ground, such as pollination and Rhizobia symbiosis. Yet, these interactions remain unexplored, particularly in the context of different cropping systems. This study investigated the interactive effects of intercropping and pollination on faba bean nodulation and yield in an organic system, where faba bean and pumpkin were alternated in 3 m-wide strips and compared to faba bean plants grown as a monocrop. Faba bean nodulation and yield were evaluated in open (insect-pollinated) and bagged (self-pollinated) plants. Results showed that faba bean yield and nodulation were enhanced at strip edges. Nodule mass increased by 45 %, the number of active nodules increased by 33 %, and seed weight per plant was 61 % higher compared to monocrops. Insect pollination treatment also increased nodule mass by 19 % and seed weight by 37 %. We found that pollination treatment influenced the relationship between active nodules and yield parameters with insect-pollinated plants being less dependent on active nodules for productivity. In addition, we found complex interactions between cropping system, pollination treatments and nodulation, whereby, in intercropping systems, both yield and nodulation benefit from pollination but not in monocropping systems. Our findings confirm that intercropping positively affects faba bean yield and nodulation, likely driven by nutrient competition and resource use complementarity between crops. Importantly, we provide the first evidence of pollination affecting faba bean- Rhizobia symbiosis, likely through shifts in plant resource allocation. These findings underscore the need to better understand interactions between above- and belowground symbioses for the transition towards sustainable agriculture.
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Claims 10
Claim · model-written summary
Faba bean yield and nodulation were enhanced at strip edges.
- Taxon
- faba bean
Vicia fabae1 - Outcome
- yield and nodulatione1
- Direction
- enhancede1
- Setting
- strip edgese1
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“Results showed that faba bean yield and nodulation were enhanced at strip edges”
Claim · model-written summary
Nodule mass increased by 45 % in the intercropped faba bean compared with the monocrop.
- Taxon
- faba beanVicia fabae0
- Treatment
- faba bean and pumpkin were alternated in 3 m-wide stripse0
- Outcome
- Nodule masse2
- Direction
- increasede2
- Value
- 45 %e2
- Comparator
- monocrope0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“faba bean and pumpkin were alternated in 3 m-wide strips and compared to faba bean plants grown as a monocrop”
e2“Nodule mass increased by 45 %”
Claim · model-written summary
The number of active nodules increased by 33 % in the intercropped faba bean compared with the monocrop.
- Taxon
- faba beanVicia fabae0
- Treatment
- faba bean and pumpkin were alternated in 3 m-wide stripse0
- Outcome
- the number of active nodulese3
- Direction
- increasede3
- Value
- 33 %e3
- Comparator
- monocrope0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“faba bean and pumpkin were alternated in 3 m-wide strips and compared to faba bean plants grown as a monocrop”
e3“the number of active nodules increased by 33 %”
Claim · model-written summary
Seed weight per plant was 61 % higher in the intercropped faba bean than in the monocrop.
- Taxon
- faba beanVicia fabae0
- Treatment
- faba bean and pumpkin were alternated in 3 m-wide stripse0
- Outcome
- seed weight per plante4
- Direction
- highere4
- Value
- 61 %e4
- Comparator
- monocropse4
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“faba bean and pumpkin were alternated in 3 m-wide strips and compared to faba bean plants grown as a monocrop”
e4“seed weight per plant was 61 % higher compared to monocrops”
Claim · model-written summary
Insect pollination increased nodule mass by 19 % compared with self-pollinated plants.
- Taxon
- faba beanVicia fabae0
- Treatment
- Insect pollinatione5
- Outcome
- nodule masse5
- Direction
- increasede5
- Value
- 19 %e5
- Comparator
- bagged (self-pollinated)e6
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“faba bean and pumpkin were alternated in 3 m-wide strips and compared to faba bean plants grown as a monocrop”
e5“Insect pollination treatment also increased nodule mass by 19 % and seed weight by 37 %”
e6“evaluated in open (insect-pollinated) and bagged (self-pollinated) plants”
Claim · model-written summary
Insect pollination increased seed weight by 37 % compared with self-pollinated plants.
- Taxon
- faba beanVicia fabae0
- Treatment
- Insect pollinatione5
- Outcome
- seed weighte5
- Direction
- increasede5
- Value
- 37 %e5
- Comparator
- bagged (self-pollinated)e6
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“faba bean and pumpkin were alternated in 3 m-wide strips and compared to faba bean plants grown as a monocrop”
e5“Insect pollination treatment also increased nodule mass by 19 % and seed weight by 37 %”
e6“evaluated in open (insect-pollinated) and bagged (self-pollinated) plants”
Claim · model-written summary
Insect-pollinated faba bean plants were less dependent on active nodules for productivity.
- Taxon
- Vicia fabaVicia fabat0
- Treatment
- insect-pollinatede7
- Outcome
- dependent on active nodulese7
- Direction
- lesse7
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e7“We found that pollination treatment influenced the relationship between active nodules and yield parameters with insect-pollinated plants being less dependent on active nodules for productivity”
t0“Vicia faba”
Claim · model-written summary
Intercropping positively affected faba bean yield and nodulation compared with the monocrop.
- Taxon
- faba beanVicia fabae1
- Treatment
- intercroppinge1
- Outcome
- yield and nodulatione1
- Direction
- positively affectse1
- Qualifier
- likely driven by nutrient competition and resource use complementaritye1
- Comparator
- monocrope0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“faba bean and pumpkin were alternated in 3 m-wide strips and compared to faba bean plants grown as a monocrop”
e1“Our findings confirm that intercropping positively affects faba bean yield and nodulation, likely driven by nutrient competition and resource use complementarity between crops”
Claim · model-written summary
Yield and nodulation benefited from pollination in intercropping but not in monocropping.
- Taxon
- Vicia fabaVicia fabat0
- Treatment
- pollinatione1
- Outcome
- yield and nodulatione1
- Direction
- benefite1
- Setting
- intercropping systemse1
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“in intercropping systems, both yield and nodulation benefit from pollination but not in monocropping systems”
t0“Vicia faba”
Claim · model-written summary
Pollination affected the faba bean-Rhizobia symbiosis, likely through shifts in plant resource allocation.
- Taxon
- faba beanVicia fabae1
- Treatment
- pollinatione1
- Interactor
- Rhizobiae1symbiont
- Outcome
- faba bean- Rhizobia symbiosise1
- Direction
- affectinge1
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“we provide the first evidence of pollination affecting faba bean- Rhizobia symbiosis, likely through shifts in plant resource allocation”
The same questions in other papers
intercropping · symbiosis · Vicia faba (faba bean)Positive and negative results
9 papers in the same direction as this paper · 1 in the opposite direction
- positive
- negative
- positive
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See all 11 papers →pollination · yield · Vicia faba (faba bean)Positive and negative results
6 papers in the same direction as this paper · 4 in the opposite direction · 1 reporting no difference from an alternative
- negative
- positive
- negative
8 papers more in this group
See all 12 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.