IntroductionPlastic film mulching (PFM) and deficit irrigation (DI) are vital water-saving approaches in arid agriculture. Cyperus esculentus is a significant crop in dry zones. However, scant data exists on the impacts of these water-saving methods on C. esculentus yield and quality.MethodUsing randomized block experiment design. Three irrigation strategies were tested: CK (standard irrigation), RW20 (20% water reduction), and RW40 (40% water reduction). Mulchin treatments included film mulching (FM) and no film mulching (NFM).ResultsResults revealed substantial effects of film mulching and drip irrigation on soil nutrients and physical properties, with minor influence on grass, root, and tuber stoichiometry. PF treatment, DI treatments, and their interaction significantly affected C. esculentus forage and tuber yields. Initially, grass and tuber yields increased and then decreased with reduced irrigation. The highest yields were under RW20 (3716.31 and 4758.19 kg/ha). FM increased grass and tuber yield by 17.99% and 8.46%, respectively, over NFM. The water reduction augmented the biomass distribuiton of the leaf and root, while reducing the tuber biomass in NFM. FM significantely impacted grass ether extract content, while reduced water influenced grass and tuber crude protein and tuber ether extract content. Mild water stress increased ether extract, crude protein, and soluble matter in grass and tubers, while excessive RW decreased them.ConclusionIntegrating soil traits, nutrients, yield, and quality, findings indicate C. esculentus yield and quality primarily hinge on soil water content, pond hydrogenase, and electrical conductivity. Based on this results, the recommended strategy is to reduce irrigation by 20% for cultivating C. esculentus in this area.

The mycobiome in the rhizosphere and within the root benefit the nutrition and function of host plants. However, compared with the bacterial community, root-associated mycobiomes of desert plants and the forces that drive their assemblage are limited. Here, we conducted an investigation of the mycobiome in bulk soil, rhizosphere, and root compartments of Alhagi sparsifolia Shap., a phreatophyte species dominating in Central Asia. The internal transcribed spacer gene phylogenetic profiles showed significantly diverse mycobiome across three compartments and host growth times, which jointly explained 31.45% of the variation in community composition. The community structure of the perennial stage was markedly different from that of other stages (30 days to 2 years old). Along the soil-plant continuum, the Chao1 decreased gradually, while concomitantly an increasing community dissimilarity and the influence of edaphic factors. Specific leaf area, soil water content, and soil organic matter levels were common factors driving the composition of the three mycobiome. A more complex and connected network was observed in the root community than in other compartments. Overall, our work suggests that an age-sensitive host effect restructured desert plant root-associated mycobiome, and edaphic factors and host growth strategy may play a potential role in this process.

Abstract Aims To study the effect of drip irrigation mulching and the most suitable irrigation system for Cyperus esculentus L., and to provide a reference for the construction of a cultivation model for water-saving and high yield management of Cyperus esculentus. Methods To study the effects of irrigation and mulching control on the nutrients and biomass of Cyperus esculentus, a combination of field and indoor experiments analyzed the film mulching (FM) and no film mulching (NFM) treatments and different irrigation treatments, CK (control, the common local irrigation of 5316.45 m3·ha-2), T1 (3431.40 m3·ha-2) and T2 (4133.85 m3·ha-2), and the correlation between soil and plant nutrient content and biomass. Results The result showed that contents of soil organ carbon (SOC), soil total nitrogen (STN), and soil total phosphorus (STP) dropped layer by layer with soil depth increased, and film mulching reduced SOC, STN, and STP contents, and reaching maximum under the T2NFM treatment. T2NFM treatment significantly increased leaf total phosphorus (LTP) and root total nitrogen (RTN). The aboveground and underground biomass reached maximum under the T2FM treatment, followed by higher biomass under FM than the NFM treatment. According to correlation analysis that the biomass of Cyperus esculentus, soil and plant nutrient contents, and yield could be improved by changing the water and fertilizer supply. Conclusion In conclusion, the region's soils are generally nitrogen-limited, therefore supplemental nitrogen fertilization is recommended for agricultural production. In addition, the irrigation of 4133.85 m3·ha-2 under the mulching condition not only improved yield but also saved water resources.

The mycobiome in the rhizosphere and within the roots benefits the nutrition and function of host plants. However, compared with the bacterial community, root-associated mycobiomes of desert plants and the forces that drive their assemblage are limited. Here, we investigated the mycobiomes in bulk soil, rhizosphere, and root compartments of Alhagi sparsifolia Shap., a phreatophyte species dominating in Central Asia. The internal transcribed spacer (ITS) gene phylogenetic profiles displayed significantly diverse mycobiomes across three compartments and host growth times, together explaining 31.45% of the variation in the community composition. The community structure of the perennial stage was markedly different from that of other stages (30 days to 2 years old). Along the soil–plant continuum, the α-diversity (estimated by Chao1) decreased gradually, while concomitantly increasing the community dissimilarity and the influence of edaphic factors. Specific leaf area, soil water content, and soil organic matter levels were common factors driving the composition of the three mycobiome communities. A more complex and connected network was observed in the root community compared with the other compartments. Overall, our work suggests that an age-sensitive host effect restructured the desert-plant-root-associated mycobiome, and that edaphic factors and host growth strategy may play potential roles in this process.