Saline-alkali soil is a major constraint in agricultural production worldwide; environmentally sustainable amendment is being adopted. This study systematically investigated the effects of different concentrations of apple fermentation liquid (AFL). On rice growth under saline-alkali soil using a controlled greenhouse pot experiment. Rice plants were treated with four AFL dilutions (1:25, 1:50, 1:100 and 1:200, v/v), and the plant growth traits, development, physiological responses, biochemical characteristics, rhizosphere fungal community composition, and root transcriptome profiles were assessed. The results showed that: (1) AFL application significantly enhanced growth of rice, with the JS25 (1:25) treatment increasing plant height, stem and root length by 70.7%, 111.4% and 72.9% respectively, compared with the saline-alkali control. It also increased the antioxidant enzyme activities CAT (114.7%-232.2%) and SOD (52.5%-119.1%), and chlorophyll content (127.1%-189.6%), while indicating alleviation of saline-alkali stress by reducing proline accumulation (53.0%-74.9%); (2) High-throughput sequencing (ITS region) revealed that AFL treatment significantly altered the structure of rhizosphere fungal community, markedly increasing the relative abundance of genera such as Plectosphaerella, and Acremonium while changes in Fusarium abundance were interpreted cautiously due to its taxonomic diversity; (3) Transcriptome analysis showed that AFL treatment (JS100) induced large-scale gene expression reprograming in rice roots, including genes associated with ion transport, antioxidant defense, and stress signaling pathways. Because of the post-treatment soil physiochemical parameters and qRT-PCR validation were not conducted, the proposed mechanism should be considered exploratory and hypothesis generating. Overall, this study suggests that AFL treatment may enhance rice stress tolerance under saline-alkali conditions, as reflected in the observed physiochemical, fungal, and transcriptomic responses. However, due to the absence of post-treatment soil analysis and qRT-PCR validation, these findings should be considered exploratory and hypothesis-generating.
He Xu, Pan Qi, Ziyang Liu et al.· Frontiers in Plant Science· 0 citations
Climatic stresses impede plant growth and development, leading to significant reductions in crop yield and biomass production. These challenges are exacerbated by global population growth and increasing desertification, which threaten global food security. Although advanced agricultural technologies, including smart irrigation systems, optimized cropping calendars, and stress-tolerant cultivars, have been developed to mitigate these stressors, their large-scale adoption remains limited due to high costs, technical complexity, and infrastructural constraints. Therefore, sustainable, eco-friendly, and cost-effective strategies are urgently required to ensure adequate crop productivity for the growing global population. At this crucial juncture, there is a pressing need to transition toward sustainable agricultural practices that strengthen plant resilience through natural and biological mechanisms. Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) represent a promising biological approach for enhancing crop productivity by improving nutrient availability and mitigating the adverse effects of climate-induced abiotic and biotic stresses. This review uniquely integrates the biochemical, physiological, and molecular mechanisms of PGPR in plant nutrition and stress mitigation while critically analyzing contradictory field results and highlighting newly characterized strains and sustainable tools for climate-resilient agriculture.
Pan Qi, Haoyue Liang, Liquan Zhao et al.· Frontiers in Microbiology· 0 citations
Although green manure crops are widely recognized for ameliorating alkaline soils, some previous studies have focused mainly on laboratory germination screenings or single yield indicators, and field validation of the synergy between high yield and soil improvement remains comparatively limited. This study evaluated 16 species/accessions with varying salt tolerance in a typical alkaline soil (initial pH 9.01, EC 306 μS·cm−1) in Heilongjiang Province during 2024–2025, based on prior laboratory screening. The experiment was conducted at a single location with three field replicates, and the same plots were monitored across both years. Plant height, fresh/dry grass yield, and soil properties (pH, EC, organic matter, nutrients) were monitored. Glycine max (L.) Merr. and Sesbania Scop. achieved dual synergy, with two-year average fresh yields of 40,733 and 35,750 kg·ha−1, respectively, while reducing soil pH by 0.28–0.29 and electrical conductivity (EC) by 42.2–46.3%. Melilotus officinalis and Vicia villosa Roth exhibited the strongest alkali reduction (pH ↓0.29, EC ↓39.0–39.7%) with moderate yields. Sorghum sudanense showed the highest salt reduction (EC ↓49.0%). Principal component analysis classified the 16 species into four functional types, revealing preliminary ecological patterns for functional differentiation. This study proposes a “laboratory screening–field validation–functional classification” evaluation framework, which requires further validation across different regions and longer time scales for the biological amelioration of alkaline soils.
Ruonan Du, Qiang Gao, Xue Yang et al.· Agronomy· 0 citations