Husk tomato (Physalis philadelphica Lam.) a source of functional food and medicinal compounds, has attracted renewed interest for production in temperate zones. Field-grown husk tomato yield and fruit properties and their relationship with soil chemistry and temperature were studied in the south of West Siberia, Russia, at five experimental sites. At each site, a microplot experiment with two cultivars was conducted. Basic soil chemical properties and fruit pH and dry matter, total carbon, nitrogen, and ascorbic acid content were determined. Both cultivars grew and yielded very well, producing on average 70 fruits, or 1.46 kg, per plant, with 14 mg ascorbic acid per 100 g fresh weight, 9.0% dry matter, and juice pH of 4.1. Variation in environmental conditions among sites was the major factor determining production and fruit property variation, with cultivar biology accounting for 10%. The cultivars responded differently to some soil properties, but generally their yield and fruit quality depended on soil pH and labile phosphorous and potassium. Thus, husk tomato has remarkable capacity for vigorous yields in unprotected conditions in West Siberia, despite air and soil temperatures that are much lower than in its region of origin. Detailed studies are needed to elucidate its response to varying solar radiation and atmospheric precipitation.

Agricultural practices can affect root-associated microbiota, but the effect of fertilization is still poorly examined. The aim of this study was to obtain 16S and ITS metagenomic profiles of tomato rhizosphere and root endosphere under mineral (NPK) fertilization in the open field experiment in the south of West Siberia. We found 6 bacterial and 3 fungal phyla in the roots and 24 bacterial and 16 fungal phyla in the rhizosphere. Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria together contributed 90% of the total number of sequence reads in roots and 50% in the rhizosphere, whereas Ascomycota ultimately prevailed in OTUs’ richness and abundance in both biotopes. Fertilization changed the relative abundance of 32 bacterial and 14 fungal OTUs in the rhizosphere and of 7 bacterial and 3 fungal OTUs in roots. The revealed root bacteriobiome response to conventional mineral NPK fertilization by the dominant taxa at the high taxonomic level (class) illustrates well the role of NPK-changed plant metabolism in shaping endophytic microbiota and hence fertilization potential in enhancing plant growth-promoting microorganisms and mitigating plant pathogens. Using fertilization rate gradient in further research may bring a more detailed understanding of how to modify and even fine-tune root-associated microbiomes in order to enhance crops' health and yields.

No abstract

No abstract