Root Exudates from <i>Areca catechu</i> L. Intercropping System Promote Nutrient Uptake and Sustainable Production of <i>Piper nigrum</i> L.
2025
Zhiyuan Li | Yaqi Zhao | Chao Zu | Zhigang Li | Weiquan Zheng | Huan Yu | Shengfeng Gao | Shichao Liu | Baogui Zhang | Xinxin Wang | Can Wang | Jianfeng Yang
<i>Piper nigrum</i>–<i>Areca catechu</i> intercropping mitigates soil problems related to continuous <i>P. nigrum</i> cropping, but the exact reason for this is not clear. In this study, the intercropping system increased <i>P. nigrum</i>’s single plant weight by 27.0–55.5% and unit yield per hectare by 5.1–33.5% in 2019–2022. Intercropping altered the metabolic profiles of root exudates from both species, with increases in flavonoids (epicatechin and 4′,5,6,7-Tetramethoxyflavone), alkaloids (litebamine), and amino acids (proline betaine, L-homocysteic acid and L-homocysteic acid). Intercropping further increased the abundance of dominant soil bacteria, including GAL15 (354.9%) and Bacteroidota (70.4%) in the <i>P. nigrum</i> rhizosphere, and Firmicutes (141.8%) and WPS2 (75.3%) in the <i>A. catechu</i> rhizosphere. In the intercropping system, the abundance of soil flavonoids, including tangeritin, trifolirhizin, and hexamethylquercetagetin, which participated in improving nutrient absorption and plant growth, increased by 106.4~356.0%, 28.9~45.5%, and 45.2~127.1%, respectively, during the whole growing period. Overall, intercropping with <i>A. catechu</i> promoted carbon input to the <i>P. nigrum</i> soil via root exudates. This increased the diversity of <i>P. nigrum</i> rhizosphere beneficial bacterial communities, as well as the amounts of nutrients and plant growth-promoting secondary metabolites. Together, these effects improved nutrient uptake and utilization, thereby driving the sustainable production of <i>P. nigrum</i>, and ultimately achieving higher yields.
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