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Short-chain fatty acid producers in compost tea as affected by brewing time and aeration condition

  • Soils, Sec 3 • Remediation and Management of Contaminated or Degraded Lands • Research Article
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Abstract

Purpose

The objectives of the present paper were to (1) investigate the effect of compost tea on pakchoi; (2) illustrate the microbial community and metabolite variations under different aeration treatments and brewing time; and (3) figure out the response mechanism of compost tea to fermentation procedure.

Materials and methods

The effects of compost tea with varied compost/water ratio on pakchoi yield were investigated first. Then, compost tea under different aeration treatments (aerobic or anoxic treatment for 48 h and then switched aeration treatments for another 48 h) was conducted, and physicochemical properties and microbial community were analyzed. This study also investigated the effects of brewing time on microbial metabolisms when compost tea was fermented for 72 h in total with intermittent ventilation.

Results and discussion

It was interesting that compost tea could improve pakchoi yield by 46.59% compared to control treatment. Short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) was found noteworthy during compost tea fermentation, and its producers were key microbes in response to aeration conditions. It also was found that acetic acid (a typical SCFA) was prone to accumulation under anoxic conditions especially at earlier period of fermentation. The total fermentation process is suggested to be divided into three stages according to microbial metabolic characters including initial stage, exuberant stage, and mature stage, respectively. It was also found that vitamin B6 metabolism, which indirectly related to SCFA metabolism, played an important role during all the 3 stages.

Conclusions

SCFA was found noteworthy during compost tea fermentation, and its producers were the key microbes in response to aeration conditions. The total fermentation process is suggested to be divided into three stages according to microbial metabolic characters including initial stage, exuberant stage, and mature stage, respectively.

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Data availability

Data will be made available on request.

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Funding

This research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31972943), the earmarked fund for CARS (China Agriculture Research System, CARS-29-ZP-10), and the China State Construction Engineering Corporation  Technology Research and Development Project (CSCEC-2023-Z-21).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Efficient Utilization of Arid and Semi-arid Arable Land in Northern China, China-New Zealand Joint Laboratory for Soil Molecular Ecology, Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, 100081, China

    Xiaoxing Wang, Qihang Wei, Quansheng Zhao, Hui Deng & Zhaojun Li

  2. Key Laboratory of Livestock and Poultry Multi-Omics of MARA, Shandong Key Laboratory of Animal Disease Control and Breeding, Institute of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine, Shandong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, No. 202, Industrial North Road, Shandong, Jinan 250100, China

    Xiayan Liu

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  1. Xiaoxing Wang
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  2. Qihang Wei
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  4. Xiayan Liu
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Contributions

Xiaoxing Wang: conceptualization, methodology, investigation, validation, data curation, visualization, and writing, original draft. Qihang Wei: conceptualization, methodology, investigation, validation, and data curation. Quansheng Zhao: methodology, data curation, and formal analysis. Xiayan Liu: formal analysis and writing, review and editing. Hui Deng: formal analysis, visualization, and validation. Zhaojun Li: conceptualization, funding acquisition, project administration, resources, and supervision.

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Correspondence to Zhaojun Li.

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Responsible editor: Yanzheng Gao

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Wang, X., Wei, Q., Zhao, Q. et al. Short-chain fatty acid producers in compost tea as affected by brewing time and aeration condition. J Soils Sediments 23, 3096–3107 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-023-03542-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11368-023-03542-7

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