Disentangling the root- and detritus-based food chain in the micro-food web of an arable soil by plant removal.

ABSTRACT: Soil food web structure and function is primarily determined by the major basal resources, which are living plant tissue, root exudates and dead organic matter. A field experiment was performed to disentangle the interlinkage of the root-and detritus-based soil food chains. An arable site was cropped either with maize, amended with maize shoot litter or remained bare soil, representing food webs depending on roots, aboveground litter and soil organic matter as predominant resource, respectively. The soil micro-food web, i.e. microorganisms and nematodes, was investigated in two successive years along a depth transect. The community composition of nematodes was used as model to determine the changes in the rhizosphere, detritusphere and bulk soil food web. In the first growing season the im

SUBMITTER: Glavatska O 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5509179 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature