Effect of Plastic Mulching on Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Cycling-Related Bacterial Community Structure and Function in a Dryland Spring Maize Field

Plastic mulching, given its positive effects on temperature and water retention, has been widely used to solve shortages nutrient scarcity in rainfed agricultural soils. This practice affects the physical chemical processes of soil, including carbon nitrogen cycling. However, research into microbe-mediated cycling soil with plastic mulching is still limited. In this study, structures functions bacterial community non-mulched spring maize, plastic-mulched bareland fallow a dryland field Loess Plateau China were analyzed explore responses mulching. Results showed that richness bacteria was highest fallow. increased diversity certain extent (p > 0.05), significantly content microbial biomass (MBN) < 0.05). enhanced total abundances cycling-related microbes, exhibiting significant increase Cellvibrio, Bacillus, Methylobacterium Nitrospira Predicted functional analysis revealed 299 metabolic pathways related cycling, methane metabolism, fixation photosynthetic organisms, metabolism. The number gene families assigned higher mulched than maize. study demonstrated enhances capacity revealing potential mediating greenhouse gas emissions maize fields Plateau.