Native plant gardens support more microbial diversity and higher relative abundance of potentially beneficial taxa compared to adjacent turf grass lawns

Humphrey, Christine E.; Kyndt, John A.; Moore, Tyler C.

doi:10.1007/s11252-022-01325-5

Cited by 6 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 86 publications

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“…They have a positive impact on human life in cities [21][22][23][24]. However, it is crucial to emphasize that a lawn is a deliberately created plant community consisting of a variety of grass species, including numerous nonnative species [25,26]. These lawns are meticulously cultivated to attain the visually appealing aesthetic of a lush green carpet [27].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nature-Based Management of Lawns—Enhancing Biodiversity in Urban Green Infrastructure

Winkler,

Pasternak,

Sas

et al. 2024

Applied Sciences

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Urban green areas have multifunctional benefits that may mitigate unfavorable health and ecological effects. Green areas represent important biodiversity hideouts in anthropogenic regions. Lawns are the most common elements of urban greenery, covering a considerable number of green areas in cities. The aim of this analysis was to gain knowledge on urban greenery and elaborate recommendations related to management that favors grass lawn biodiversity. The established working hypothesis is that the limited intensity of management in urban grass areas is reflected in the modification of their species composition, as well as their potential ecological functions. An experiment on the management of city lawns was conducted in 2010 (still ongoing). There are three lawn variants under different management methods: ornamental, city, and permaculture lawns. Vegetation was assessed using the method of phytocoenological relevés. The coverage values of the individual plant species were processed using multidimensional analysis of ecological data. The results showed that human decisions and activities affected the species composition of these grassy areas. There were 46 plant taxa found during the monitoring: 12 in ornamental lawn variants, 24 in city lawn variants, and 31 in permaculture lawn variants. Permaculture lawns with extensive management represent the most environmentally friendly variant with respect to biodiversity and soil moisture content. However, changes in species composition have raised questions regarding the extent to which they may perform other ecosystem functions. Increasing the intensity of lawn management has resulted in lower plant diversity. Extensive management alters the aesthetic value of lawns and creates spaces for species that may spread in urban environments.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nature-Based Management of Lawns—Enhancing Biodiversity in Urban Green Infrastructure

Winkler,

Pasternak,

Sas

et al. 2024

Applied Sciences

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Characterizing suburban soil and microbial properties along a soil age chronosequence

Suratt,

Behl,

Hong

et al. 2024

Ecosphere

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Rapid urbanization is drastically altering ecosystem processes in landscapes around the world. In particular, suburban residential neighborhoods comprise novel ecosystems with water and nutrient inputs that differ greatly from the surrounding land area. These impacts generate concern over the sustainability of urban ecosystems, especially whether they will be characterized by net carbon gain or loss over time. To address this knowledge gap, we established a chronosequence of residential yards in Southern California to test how urban soils change after development. We predicted that urbanized soils would experience shifts in physical characteristics and microbial function over time consistent with ecological succession theory, but residential soils would maintain novel moisture and nutrient regimes compared to undeveloped soils, never “recovering” to a pre‐developed state. We compared different vegetation types to quantify impacts of homeowner landscaping choices and characterized yard soils and their microbial communities. We found that yard soils were nutrient‐ and moisture‐enriched compared to an adjacent undeveloped ecosystem, and turfgrass was associated with higher levels of water and nitrogen. Despite high respiration rates, yard soils accumulated carbon and nitrogen over time. We conclude that suburban residential soils comprise dynamic and heterogeneous ecosystems that are highly influenced by landscaping choices and management practices, and warrant closer study at small management‐relevant scales.

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Soil microbiome perturbation impedes growth ofBouteloua curtipendulaand increases relative abundance of soil microbial pathogens

Hobbs,

Ochoa-Rojas,

Humphrey

et al. 2024

Preprint

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Bouteloua curtipendula (sideoats grama) is a valuable prairie grass for livestock forage, supporting food webs of herbivorous insects, reducing soil erosion, and limiting weed infiltration in urban grasslands. Efficient establishment of B. curtipendula in prairie restorations and urban plantings could drastically improve long-term functionality of the space. Soil microbial communities have been linked to plant germination, growth, and drought tolerance in many plant species, however little is known about the factors contributing to B. curtipendula germination and early growth. In this study, we used sterilized soil to examine the impact of soil microbes on B. curtipendula growth under greenhouse conditions. We found Bouteloua curtipendula emergence and growth to be impaired in sterilized soil compared to non-sterilized soil. Using high throughput sequencing of the soil, we found that B. curtipendula grown in sterilized soil induced a greater proportion of plant pathogens and fewer nitrifying bacteria when grown in non-sterilized soil. For example, there was a significantly higher proportion of Acidovorax, Cellvibrio, and Xanthomonas which are known to contain plant pathogens, while plant-growth promoting bacteria, like Rhodopseudomonas, were significantly higher in the non-sterile conditions. We found that soil sterilization and growth of B. curtipendula changed the relative abundance of metabolic subsystem genes in the soil, however, by seven weeks after seeding, B. curtipendula transformed the bacterial community of sterile soil such that it was indiscernible from non-sterile soil. In contrast, fungal communities in sterilized soil were still different from non-sterilized soil seven weeks post-seeding. It appears that the bacteria are involved in the initial establishment of beneficial conditions that set the stage for a robust fungal and plant seedling development.

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Native plant gardens support more microbial diversity and higher relative abundance of potentially beneficial taxa compared to adjacent turf grass lawns

Cited by 6 publications

References 86 publications

Nature-Based Management of Lawns—Enhancing Biodiversity in Urban Green Infrastructure

Nature-Based Management of Lawns—Enhancing Biodiversity in Urban Green Infrastructure

Characterizing suburban soil and microbial properties along a soil age chronosequence

Soil microbiome perturbation impedes growth ofBouteloua curtipendulaand increases relative abundance of soil microbial pathogens

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