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Oddi L, Volpe V, Carotenuto G, Politi M, Barni E, Crosino A, Siniscalco C, Genre A. Boosting species evenness, productivity and weed control in a mixed meadow by promoting arbuscular mycorrhizas. Front Plant Sci 2024; 15:1303750. [PMID: 38390295 PMCID: PMC10883063 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2024.1303750] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2023] [Accepted: 01/08/2024] [Indexed: 02/24/2024]
Abstract
Lowland meadows represent aboveground and belowground biodiversity reservoirs in intensive agricultural areas, improving water retention and filtration, ensuring forage production, contrasting erosion and contributing to soil fertility and carbon sequestration. Besides such major ecosystem services, the presence of functionally different plant species improves forage quality, nutritional value and productivity, also limiting the establishment of weeds and alien species. Here, we tested the effectiveness of a commercial seed mixture in restoring a lowland mixed meadow in the presence or absence of inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi and biostimulation of symbiosis development with the addition of short chain chito-oligosaccharides (CO). Plant community composition, phenology and productivity were regularly monitored alongside AM colonization in control, inoculated and CO-treated inoculated plots. Our analyses revealed that the CO treatment accelerated symbiosis development significantly increasing root colonization by AM fungi. Moreover, the combination of AM fungal inoculation and CO treatment improved plant species evenness and productivity with more balanced composition in forage species. Altogether, our study presented a successful and scalable strategy for the reintroduction of mixed meadows as valuable sources of forage biomass; demonstrated the positive impact of CO treatment on AM development in an agronomic context, extending previous observations developed under controlled laboratory conditions and leading the way to the application in sustainable agricultural practices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ludovica Oddi
- Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | - Veronica Volpe
- Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | - Gennaro Carotenuto
- Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | - Mara Politi
- Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | - Elena Barni
- Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | - Andrea Crosino
- Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | - Consolata Siniscalco
- Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | - Andrea Genre
- Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
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Sărățeanu V, Cotuna O, Paraschivu M, Cojocariu LL, Horablaga NM, Rechițean D, Mircov VD, Sălceanu C, Urlică AA, Copăcean L. Features of Natural Succession of Ex-Arable Forest Steppe Grassland (from Western Romania) under the Influence of Climate. Plants (Basel) 2023; 12:1204. [PMID: 36986892 PMCID: PMC10059065 DOI: 10.3390/plants12061204] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2023] [Revised: 02/20/2023] [Accepted: 02/23/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Important land surfaces from hill and mountain areas from the northern hemisphere formerly used for cropping were abandoned. Often, the abandoned land evolved by natural succession to grassland, shrubland or even to forest. The main goal of this paper is to bring new datasets necessary for the understanding of the evolution of ex-arable grassland vegetation from the forest steppe area into relationship with climate. The researches were performed in the locality of Grădinari (Caraş-Severin County, Western Romania) on an ex-arable plot abandoned since 1995. The vegetation data were collected for 19 years (time interval 2003-2021). The analyzed vegetation features were floristic composition, biodiversity and pastoral value. The climate data considered were air temperature and rainfall amount. The vegetation and climate data were correlated statistically, with a view to highlighting the potential impact of the temperature and rainfalls during the evolution of succession process on the grassland's floristic composition, biodiversity and pastoral value. The pressure of the increased temperatures on the natural restoration process of the biodiversity and pastoral value of ex-arable forest steppe grassland could, at least partially, be mitigated by random grazing and mulching works.
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Affiliation(s)
- Veronica Sărățeanu
- Agriculture Faculty, University of Life Sciences “King Michael I” from Timisoara Calea Aradului Street, No. 119, 300645 Timișoara, Romania
| | - Otilia Cotuna
- Agriculture Faculty, University of Life Sciences “King Michael I” from Timisoara Calea Aradului Street, No. 119, 300645 Timișoara, Romania
- Agricultural Research and Development Station Lovrin, Street Principală, No. 200, 307250 Lovrin, Romania
| | - Mirela Paraschivu
- Faculty of Agronomy, Department of Agriculture and Forestry Technologies, University of Craiova, A.I. Cuza Street, No. 13, 200585 Craiova, Romania
| | - Luminița L. Cojocariu
- Agriculture Faculty, University of Life Sciences “King Michael I” from Timisoara Calea Aradului Street, No. 119, 300645 Timișoara, Romania
- Agricultural Research and Development Station Lovrin, Street Principală, No. 200, 307250 Lovrin, Romania
| | - Nicolae Marinel Horablaga
- Agriculture Faculty, University of Life Sciences “King Michael I” from Timisoara Calea Aradului Street, No. 119, 300645 Timișoara, Romania
- Agricultural Research and Development Station Lovrin, Street Principală, No. 200, 307250 Lovrin, Romania
| | - Dorin Rechițean
- Agricultural Research and Development Station Lovrin, Street Principală, No. 200, 307250 Lovrin, Romania
| | - Vlad Dragoslav Mircov
- Agriculture Faculty, University of Life Sciences “King Michael I” from Timisoara Calea Aradului Street, No. 119, 300645 Timișoara, Romania
| | - Călin Sălceanu
- Faculty of Agronomy, Department of Agriculture and Forestry Technologies, University of Craiova, A.I. Cuza Street, No. 13, 200585 Craiova, Romania
| | - Alina Andreea Urlică
- Agriculture Faculty, University of Life Sciences “King Michael I” from Timisoara Calea Aradului Street, No. 119, 300645 Timișoara, Romania
| | - Loredana Copăcean
- Agriculture Faculty, University of Life Sciences “King Michael I” from Timisoara Calea Aradului Street, No. 119, 300645 Timișoara, Romania
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