Can Nematode Communities Work as an Indicator of Soil Health in a Multiyear Miscanthus × Giganteus Plantation Growing in Lead-Contaminated Soil?

Abstract

Analysis of the nematode community has been considered a key indicator of soil health. In this study, the assessment of nematodes was performed two times during the third growing season in soil contaminated by chemical elements where Miscanthus × giganteus was cultivated in the years 2019–2022. A morphological approach was used to identify the nematode communities that showed sensitivity to the level of soil contamination. In contrast, the value of M × g dry biomass was a more conservative indicator and displayed only a small yield, which decreased (3.6%) at the highest level of soil contamination by lead to 290.5 ± 75.4 µg/g. Principal component analysis revealed four trends associated with the coherent variability of contamination in soil and various organs of M × g. The variability of elements was reflected by the first three principal components and did not affect the nematode community. The variability of lead concentration was associated with principal component 4, which was the largest driver of changes in the nematode community. The trophic structure of the nematode communities was the most sensitive to soil contamination by lead. A decrease in the Structural Index was the general indicator in the transformation of the nematode community structure due to increasing levels of soil contamination.