Soil microbiome indicators can predict crop growth response to large-scale inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi.

Lutz, Stefanie; Bodenhausen, Natacha; Hess, Julia; Valzano-Held, Alain; Waelchli, Jan; Deslandes-Hérold, Gabriel; Schlaeppi, Klaus; van der Heijden, Marcel G A (2023). Soil microbiome indicators can predict crop growth response to large-scale inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. Nature microbiology, 8(12), pp. 2277-2289. Springer Nature 10.1038/s41564-023-01520-w

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Alternative solutions to mineral fertilizers and pesticides that reduce the environmental impact of agriculture are urgently needed. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) can enhance plant nutrient uptake and reduce plant stress; yet, large-scale field inoculation trials with AMF are missing, and so far, results remain unpredictable. We conducted on-farm experiments in 54 fields in Switzerland and quantified the effects on maize growth. Growth response to AMF inoculation was highly variable, ranging from -12% to +40%. With few soil parameters and mainly soil microbiome indicators, we could successfully predict 86% of the variation in plant growth response to inoculation. The abundance of pathogenic fungi, rather than nutrient availability, best predicted (33%) AMF inoculation success. Our results indicate that soil microbiome indicators offer a sustainable biotechnological perspective to predict inoculation success at the beginning of the growing season. This predictability increases the profitability of microbiome engineering as a tool for sustainable agricultural management.

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