Increased Organic Fertilizer and Reduced Chemical Fertilizer Increased Fungal Diversity and the Abundance of Beneficial Fungi on the Grape Berry Surface in Arid Areas

Abstract

Fertilizer practices can significantly impact the fruit quality and microbial diversity of the orchards. The fungi on the surface of fruits are essential for fruit storability and safety. However, it is not clear whether fertilization affects the fungal diversity and community structure on the surface of grape berries. Here, grape quality and the fungal diversity on the surface of grapes harvested from three fertilizer treatments were analyzed shortly after grape picking (T0) and following 8 days of storage (T1). The study involved three treatments: (1) common chemical fertilizer for 2 years (CH); (2) increased organic fertilizer and reduced chemical fertilizer for 1 year (A.O); and (3) increased organic fertilizer and reduced chemical fertilizer for 2 years (B.O). The application of increased organic fertilizer and reduced chemical fertilizer increased the soluble solids content (SSC) of the grape berries and decreased the pH of the grape juice. A total of 827,947 high-quality fungal sequences were recovered and assigned to 527 operational taxonomic units. Members of the Ascomycota phylum were dominant in all samples and accounted for 94.41% of the total number of detected sequences, followed by the Basidiomycota (5.05%), and unidentified fungi (0.54%). Alpha and beta diversity analyses revealed significantly different fungal populations in the three fertilizer treatments over the two time periods. The fungal diversity and richness on the grape berry surface in the B.O and A.O treatments were higher than those in the CH treatment. Among the detected fungi, the B.O treatments were mainly Pichia, Aureobasidium, and Candida genera, while the CH treatments were Botrytis, Aspergillus, and Penicillium. Moreover, significant differences were revealed between the two assessment times (T0 and T1). The samples from the T0 timepoint had higher fungal richness and diversity than the samples from T1 timepoint. Increasing organic fertilizer usage in grape management could improve grape quality and went on to increase the fungal diversity, as well as the relative abundance (RA) of beneficial fungi on grape berry surfaces. The correlation analysis suggested that the pH of the grape juice was significantly negatively correlated with fungal diversity parameters.

Effects of Chemical Fertilizer Combined with Organic Fertilizer Application on Soil Properties, Citrus Growth Physiology, and Yield

“…These findings indicate that CFOF improved the soil microbial community structure in a manner that was relative to the organic matter, humic acid, and amino acids and which could increase soil microbial activity. These results are similar to the research of previous study [46,47]. Moreover, the study showed that soil microbe properties were the largest in July and were related to local temperature and humidity [48].…”

Reduced Chemical Fertilizer Combined With Bio-Organic Fertilizer Affects the Soil Microbial Community and Yield and Quality of Lettuce

“…The nutrient content of chemical fertilizers is higher than that of organic fertilizers, but it can easily cause soil degradation and environmental pollution. Several studies have found substantive evidence to show that combining chemical and organic fertilizers can improve the quality of a variety of fruits ( Wu et al, 2021a ). Caris-Veyrat et al (2004) reported that the levels of carotenoids, polyphenols, and vitamin C were higher in organically cultivated tomatoes than in traditional agricultural tomatoes.…”

Meta-Analysis Approach to Assess the Effects of Soil Tillage and Fertilization Source under Different Cropping Systems

“…Under organic fertilisation management, enhanced soil nutrient availability [24] and improved soil quality [25] have been reported. In addition, Wu et al [26] suggested that using organic nutrient sources can be an effective practice to restore microbial biomass loss due to the intensive application of chemical fertilizers. Finally, they can play a positive part in climate change mitigation by soil carbon sequestration [24].…”