Consistent bacterial selection by date palm root system across heterogeneous desert oasis agroecosystems.

ABSTRACT: Highly productive conventional agroecosystems are spatially embedded in resource-homogeneous systems and count on generally nutrient-rich soils. On the contrary, desert oases are isolated, the soil is relatively poor, but yet productivity is similar to conventional agroecosystems. Soil dominates over plant as the main factor shaping root-associated microbiomes in conventional agroecosystems. We hypothesize that in desert oasis, the environmental discontinuity, the resource paucity and limited microbial diversity of the soil make the plant a prevailing factor. We have examined the bacterial communities in the root system of date palm (Phoenix dactylifera), the iconic keystone species of the oases, grown in heterogeneous soils across a broad geographic range (22,200 km² surface ar

SUBMITTER: Mosqueira MJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6412053 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature