Perennial rice root system microbial interaction

Perennial rice is a new type of rice cultivated by the Hu Fengyi team at Yunnan University through asexual reproduction of underground stems in wild rice (Oryza longistaminata) crossed with cultivated rice (RD23) from Thailand. Molecular marker-assisted selection (MAS) technology was used to transfer the genetic characteristics of asexual reproduction from wild rice to cultivated rice, resulting in the development of high-yielding and stable rice varieties (Zhang et al., 2022). Perennial rice achieves no-tillage cultivation in rice production. After planting once, there is no need for replanting or transplanting in the following years, eliminating the need for plowing, harrowing, seed purchasing, and seedling raising, reducing labor input, lowering labor intensity and production costs. This greatly alleviates the labor shortage and low efficiency issues in rice production, enhancing the enthusiasm of grain farmers and new-type management entities (Huang et al., 2022; Zhang et al., 2019). Furthermore, due to the absence of repeated plowing and harrowing in perennial rice cultivation, water usage, water consumption, and water resource input are reduced, which is significant for preventing soil erosion (reducing soil disturbance) (Hu et al., 2020). The no-tillage-based perennial rice production method has significant social, economic, and ecological environmental effects. Long-term no-tillage in perennial rice fields can reduce CO2 emissions, increase organic matter and total nitrogen content in the soil layer, and have a notable ecological effect in carbon sequestration and soil quality improvement. Unlike conventional rice fields, the no-tillage and winter stubble retention cultivation method in perennial rice fields changes the ecological environment of rice fields by not plowing the fields after rice harvest, allowing the soil microbial communities to remain intact (Yang et al., 2021). The changes in soil nematode communities, soil microbial communities, and soil physicochemical properties in perennial rice fields with different years of no-tillage are still not fully understood. Therefore, to understand the impact of perennial rice cultivation on the soil microecological environment, this study aims to explore the changes in soil nematode communities, soil microbial communities, and soil physicochemical properties in perennial rice fields with different years of no-tillage and analyze the response mechanisms of soil nematodes and microbes to no-tillage and soil factors.