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<p>Ecosystem functionality and essential services for human well-being have been degraded by intensively managed monoculture cropping systems. Intercropping may offer a means of maintaining and increasing agricultural soil multifunctionality without reducing productivity. However, whether the maintained or enhanced soil multifunctionality by intercropping is related to the potential function changes of soil microbiome driven by intercropping is poorly understood, limiting the optimization of these systems for sustainable intensification. Therefore, we investigated crop yields and soil multifunctionality in a long-term field experiment established in 2009. The study evaluated soil physical structure stability, carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) cycling, abiotic stress regulation and related functional genes under intercropping systems (chickpea/maize, faba bean/maize, oilseed rape/maize, and soybean/maize) and monocultures of the component crops at three P fertilizer application rates (0, 40, and 80 kg P ha<sup>-1</sup>). Intercropping significantly increased crop grain yields and soil multifunctionality by 27.3 and 34.6%, respectively, compared with the weighted mean values of monocultures, irrespective of phosphorus application rate. It also significantly increased the relative abundance of genes related to C-, N-, and P-cycling functions by 15.2%, 10.8%, and 26.3%, and the relative abundance of genes was related to weighted mean diameter of aggregates, soil compaction, total nitrogen, soil microbial biomass carbon, soil respiration, soil nitrate reductase, β-cellobiohydrolase and leucine aminopeptidase. There were synergies between soil C and N cycling and between physical structure stability and C or N cycling, and trade-offs were observed between physical structure stability and phosphorus cycling. The positive effect of intercropping on soil multifunctionality was associated with enhanced enzyme activities and other soil properties and consequently increased crop yields. The results highlight the important role of intercropping in sustaining soil function and elucidate the mechanisms involved, offering novel insights into its role in reducing dependence on non-renewable P resources in agricultural ecosystems.</p>

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Intercropping increases soil multifunctionality potentially by increasing the abundance of functional genes: evidence from a long-term field experiment

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年1月12日

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  • Xiao-Tong Yin,
  • Chuan-Lin Xiao,
  • Zi-Heng Hao,
  • Cheng-Bao Wang,
  • Jun Mao,
  • Rui-Peng Yu,
  • Peter Christie,
  • Long Li

摘要

Ecosystem functionality and essential services for human well-being have been degraded by intensively managed monoculture cropping systems. Intercropping may offer a means of maintaining and increasing agricultural soil multifunctionality without reducing productivity. However, whether the maintained or enhanced soil multifunctionality by intercropping is related to the potential function changes of soil microbiome driven by intercropping is poorly understood, limiting the optimization of these systems for sustainable intensification. Therefore, we investigated crop yields and soil multifunctionality in a long-term field experiment established in 2009. The study evaluated soil physical structure stability, carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) cycling, abiotic stress regulation and related functional genes under intercropping systems (chickpea/maize, faba bean/maize, oilseed rape/maize, and soybean/maize) and monocultures of the component crops at three P fertilizer application rates (0, 40, and 80 kg P ha-1). Intercropping significantly increased crop grain yields and soil multifunctionality by 27.3 and 34.6%, respectively, compared with the weighted mean values of monocultures, irrespective of phosphorus application rate. It also significantly increased the relative abundance of genes related to C-, N-, and P-cycling functions by 15.2%, 10.8%, and 26.3%, and the relative abundance of genes was related to weighted mean diameter of aggregates, soil compaction, total nitrogen, soil microbial biomass carbon, soil respiration, soil nitrate reductase, β-cellobiohydrolase and leucine aminopeptidase. There were synergies between soil C and N cycling and between physical structure stability and C or N cycling, and trade-offs were observed between physical structure stability and phosphorus cycling. The positive effect of intercropping on soil multifunctionality was associated with enhanced enzyme activities and other soil properties and consequently increased crop yields. The results highlight the important role of intercropping in sustaining soil function and elucidate the mechanisms involved, offering novel insights into its role in reducing dependence on non-renewable P resources in agricultural ecosystems.