To compensate for the seasonal imbalance between livestock and forage yield in the cold region of Northeast China, alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) continuous cropping has been widely employed in animal husbandry. However, the effects of continuous cropping of alfalfa on soil properties, including physical, chemical and biological properties, are poorly understood. In this study, we investigated the soil properties and fungal community composition of alfalfa fields under continuous cropping for different time periods (i.e., 1, 2, 6, 9, 12, 13 and 35 years). The results showed that soil moisture, total C, total N, NO3−-N and available K content decreased at less than 10 years of continuous cropping and then increased at more than 10 years of continuous cropping, but soil total P and available P content showed the opposite tendency. The soil fungal community composition determined using Illumina Miseq sequencing showed that continuous cropping increased the fungal alpha diversity and changed the fungal community structure. The relative abundances of Guehomyces and Chaetomium decreased, but the relative abundances of Phaeomycocentrospora and Paecilomyces increased with continuous cropping time. In addition, continuous cropping of alfalfa increased the relative abundances of some plant pathogens, such as Haematonectria haematococca and Cyphellophora sp. Soil total P and available P content were important soil factors affecting the soil fungal community diversity, fungal community structure and the relative abundances of specific fungi in this alfalfa continuous cropping system.

Alfalfa is a perennial herbaceous forage legume that is remarkably and negatively affected by monocropping. However, the contribution of the changes in bacterial communities to soil sickness in alfalfa have not been elucidated. Therefore, we investigated bacterial community structures in response to monocropped alfalfa along the chronosequence. Continuous cropping remarkably reduced bacterial alpha diversity and altered community structures, and soil pH, total P and available P were strongly associated with the changes of bacterial diversity and community structures. Intriguingly, 10 years of monocropped alfalfa might be a demarcation point separating soil bacterial community structures into two obvious groups that containing soil samples collected in less and more than 10 years. The relative abundances of copiotrophic bacteria of Actinobacteria and Gammaproteobacteria significantly increased with the extension of continuous cropping years, while the oligotrophic bacteria of Armatimonadetes, Chloroflexi, Firmicutes and Gemmatimonadetes showed the opposite changing patterns. Among those altered phyla, Actinobacteria, Chloroflexi,

. 2005 Effect of N fertilizer on the productivity and nutritive values of perennial grass mixtures in the alpine region of Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, China. Can. J. Plant Sci. 85: 361-368. A study was conducted on grass mixtures that included smooth bromegrass (SB) + drooping wild ryegrass (DW), smooth bromegrass + Siberian wild ryegrass (SW) + crested wheatgrass (CW) and smooth bromegrass + Siberian wild ryegrass + drooping wild ryegrass + crested wheatgrass in the alpine region of Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau. The study was conducted from 1998 to 2000 to investigate the effects of N application rates and growing year on herbage dry matter (DM) yield and nutritive values. Herbage DM production increased linearly with N application rates. The effect of N application on DM yields was greater (P < 0.05) in the 2nd and 3rd production years than in the establishment year. Dry matter yields of SB + SW + CW and SB + SW + DW + CW can reach as high as 15 000 kg ha -1 at 345 kg ha -1 N rate in the 3rd growing year. With increased N application rates, crude protein (CP) contents and 48 h in sacco DM degradability of grasses increased (P < 0.05). No effect (P > 0.05) of N application was detected on organic matter (OM) and acid detergent fibre (ADF) concentration. It can be concluded that for increased biomass production in the alpine region of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, a minimum of 345 kg N ha -1 should be applied to grass stands in three split application of 115 kg N ha -1 , in early June, early July and late July.

Maize and alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) have been used extensively in the animal husbandry to compensate for the lack of livestock and fodder yields in the chilly northeast of China. Little is known, however, about the impact on soil characteristics of consecutive plantings in various crops and alfalfa. In this research, the soil characteristics, bacterial community diversity, and structure of the meadow, maize, and alfalfa continuous cropping fields (i.e., 6, 10, 14, 20, and 30 years) were measured. The results showed that maize cropping and continuous cropping of alfalfa increased the soil bacterial alpha diversity compared with meadow cropping, and alpha diversity of alfalfa increased with the continuous planting years. Soil pH, total phosphorus (TP), available P, total potassium (TK), and nitrate nitrogen (NO3–) content were soil variables significantly impacting the structure of soil bacterial communities in different plant types and different alfalfa continuous cropping systems. In addition, the relative abundance of some beneficial microbial species, such as Arthrobacter and Gaiellales, in the cropping maize and continuous cropping of alfalfa was much higher than that in the meadow field. Moreover, the networks differ among different plant types, and also differ among different continuous cropping years of alfalfa, and topologies of the networks suggested that continuous planting of alfalfa promotes cooperation between bacteria, which facilitates the long growth of alfalfa and is beneficial to the soil.

BackgroundThe soil fungal community is one of the most important drivers of the soil nutrient cycling that sustains plant growth. However, little research has been done on the effects of different land uses on soil fungal communities in northeast China.MethodsIn this study, we conducted a field experiment to investigate the effects of continuous cropping of grass, maize, and alfalfa on their respective fungal communities and co-occurrence networks.ResultsWe showed that the physicochemical properties of the soil, such as nitrate (NO3-N), available phosphorus, and soil pH, were the most important driving factors affecting the structure of the soil fungal community in different cropping systems. In addition, compared to the cultivation of grass and maize, the continuous cropping of alfalfa increased the abundance of several beneficial as well as pathogenic species, such as Mortierella and Gaiellales. In addition, the networks differed among plant species and according to the number of years of continuous cultivation.ConclusionThis suggests that the continuous cropping of alfalfa results in greater cooperation among fungi, which may be beneficial to the soil as well as to the development of the alfalfa.