Soil Microbiome Influences on Seedling Establishment and Growth of <i>Prosopis chilensis</i> and <i>Prosopis tamarugo</i> from Northern Chile
David Castro | Christopher Concha | Fabiola Jamett | Cristian Ibáñez | Vaughan Hurry
<i>Prosopis chilensis</i> and <i>Prosopis tamarugo</i>, two woody legumes adapted to the arid regions of Chile, have a declining distribution due to the lack of new seedling establishment. This study investigated the potential of both species to establish in soil collected from four locations in Chile, within and outside the species distribution, and to assess the role of the root-colonizing microbiome in seedling establishment and growth. Seedling survival, height, and water potential were measured to assess establishment success and growth. 16S and ITS2 amplicon sequencing was used to characterize the composition of microbial communities from the different soils and to assess the ability of both <i>Prosopis</i> species to recruit bacteria and fungi from the different soils. Both species were established on three of the four soils. <i>P. tamarugo</i> seedlings showed significantly higher survival in foreign soils and maintained significantly higher water potential in Mediterranean soils. Amplicon sequencing showed that the four soils harbored distinct microbial communities. Root-associated microbial composition indicated that <i>P. chilensis</i> preferentially recruited mycorrhizal fungal partners while <i>P. tamarugo</i> recruited abundant bacteria with known salt-protective functions. Our results suggest that a combination of edaphic properties and microbial soil legacy are potential factors mediating the <i>Prosopis</i> establishment success in different soils.
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