Variation of soil bacterial communities along a chronosequence of Eucalyptus plantation

Eucalyptus is harvested for wood and fiber production in many tropical and sub-tropical habitats globally. Plantation has been controversial because of its influence on the surrounding environment, however, the influence of massive Eucalyptus planting on soil microbial communities is unclear. Here w...

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Main Authors: Jiayu Li, Jiayi Lin, Chenyu Pei, Kaitao Lai, Thomas C. Jeffries, Guangda Tang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: PeerJ Inc. 2018-09-01
Series:PeerJ
Subjects:
Online Access:https://peerj.com/articles/5648.pdf
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author Jiayu Li
Jiayi Lin
Chenyu Pei
Kaitao Lai
Thomas C. Jeffries
Guangda Tang
author_facet Jiayu Li
Jiayi Lin
Chenyu Pei
Kaitao Lai
Thomas C. Jeffries
Guangda Tang
author_sort Jiayu Li
collection DOAJ
description Eucalyptus is harvested for wood and fiber production in many tropical and sub-tropical habitats globally. Plantation has been controversial because of its influence on the surrounding environment, however, the influence of massive Eucalyptus planting on soil microbial communities is unclear. Here we applied high-throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene to assess the microbial community composition and diversity of planting chronosequences, involving two, five and ten years of Eucalyptus plantation, comparing to that of secondary-forest in South China. We found that significant changes in the composition of soil bacteria occurred when the forests were converted from secondary-forest to Eucalyptus. The bacterial community structure was clearly distinct from control and five year samples after Eucalyptus was grown for 2 and 10 years, highlighting the influence of this plantation on local soil microbial communities. These groupings indicated a cycle of impact (2 and 10 year plantations) and low impact (5-year plantations) in this chronosequence of Eucalyptus plantation. Community patterns were underpinned by shifts in soil properties such as pH and phosphorus concentration. Concurrently, key soil taxonomic groups such as Actinobacteria showed abundance shifts, increasing in impacted plantations and decreasing in low impacted samples. Shifts in taxonomy were reflected in a shift in metabolic potential, including pathways for nutrient cycles such as carbon fixation, which changed in abundance over time following Eucalyptus plantation. Combined these results confirm that Eucalyptus plantation can change the community structure and diversity of soil microorganisms with strong implications for land-management and maintaining the health of these ecosystems.
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spelling doaj.art-6acc123375fa4f1ebd2c67b742c1186c2023-12-03T10:31:09ZengPeerJ Inc.PeerJ2167-83592018-09-016e564810.7717/peerj.5648Variation of soil bacterial communities along a chronosequence of Eucalyptus plantationJiayu Li0Jiayi Lin1Chenyu Pei2Kaitao Lai3Thomas C. Jeffries4Guangda Tang5College of Forestry and Landscape Architecture, South China Limestone Plants Research Center, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, ChinaCollege of Forestry and Landscape Architecture, South China Limestone Plants Research Center, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, ChinaCollege of Forestry and Landscape Architecture, South China Limestone Plants Research Center, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, ChinaHealth and Biosecurity, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, North Ryde, NSW, AustraliaSchool of Science and Health, University of Western Sydney, Penrith, NSW, AustraliaCollege of Forestry and Landscape Architecture, South China Limestone Plants Research Center, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, ChinaEucalyptus is harvested for wood and fiber production in many tropical and sub-tropical habitats globally. Plantation has been controversial because of its influence on the surrounding environment, however, the influence of massive Eucalyptus planting on soil microbial communities is unclear. Here we applied high-throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene to assess the microbial community composition and diversity of planting chronosequences, involving two, five and ten years of Eucalyptus plantation, comparing to that of secondary-forest in South China. We found that significant changes in the composition of soil bacteria occurred when the forests were converted from secondary-forest to Eucalyptus. The bacterial community structure was clearly distinct from control and five year samples after Eucalyptus was grown for 2 and 10 years, highlighting the influence of this plantation on local soil microbial communities. These groupings indicated a cycle of impact (2 and 10 year plantations) and low impact (5-year plantations) in this chronosequence of Eucalyptus plantation. Community patterns were underpinned by shifts in soil properties such as pH and phosphorus concentration. Concurrently, key soil taxonomic groups such as Actinobacteria showed abundance shifts, increasing in impacted plantations and decreasing in low impacted samples. Shifts in taxonomy were reflected in a shift in metabolic potential, including pathways for nutrient cycles such as carbon fixation, which changed in abundance over time following Eucalyptus plantation. Combined these results confirm that Eucalyptus plantation can change the community structure and diversity of soil microorganisms with strong implications for land-management and maintaining the health of these ecosystems.https://peerj.com/articles/5648.pdfEucalyptus plantationSoil microorganismsSoil microbial ecology
spellingShingle Jiayu Li
Jiayi Lin
Chenyu Pei
Kaitao Lai
Thomas C. Jeffries
Guangda Tang
Variation of soil bacterial communities along a chronosequence of Eucalyptus plantation
PeerJ
Eucalyptus plantation
Soil microorganisms
Soil microbial ecology
title Variation of soil bacterial communities along a chronosequence of Eucalyptus plantation
title_full Variation of soil bacterial communities along a chronosequence of Eucalyptus plantation
title_fullStr Variation of soil bacterial communities along a chronosequence of Eucalyptus plantation
title_full_unstemmed Variation of soil bacterial communities along a chronosequence of Eucalyptus plantation
title_short Variation of soil bacterial communities along a chronosequence of Eucalyptus plantation
title_sort variation of soil bacterial communities along a chronosequence of eucalyptus plantation
topic Eucalyptus plantation
Soil microorganisms
Soil microbial ecology
url https://peerj.com/articles/5648.pdf
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