title: Fine Spatial Scale Variation of Soil Microbial Communities under European Beech and Norway Spruce.
abstract: The complex interactions between trees and soil microbes in forests as well as their inherent seasonal and spatial variations are poorly understood. In this study, we analyzed the effects of major European tree species (Fagus sylvaticaL. andPicea abies(L.) Karst) on soil bacterial and fungal communities. Mineral soil samples were collected from different depths (0-10, 10-20 cm) and at different horizontal distances from beech or spruce trunks (0.5, 1.5, 2.5, 3.5 m) in early summer and autumn. We assessed the composition of soil bacterial and fungal communities based on 16S rRNA gene and ITS DNA sequences. Community composition of bacteria and fungi was most strongly affected by soil pH and tree species. Different ectomycorrhizal fungi (e.g.,Tylospora) known to establish mutualistic associations with plant roots showed a tree species preference. Moreover, bacterial and fungal community composition showed spatial and seasonal shifts in soil surrounding beech and spruce. The relative abundance of saprotrophic fungi was higher at a depth of 0-10 vs. 10-20 cm depth. This was presumably a result of changes in nutrient availability, as litter input and organic carbon content decreased with soil depth. Overall bacterial community composition showed strong variations under spruce with increasing distance from the tree trunks, which might be attributed in part to higher fine root biomass near spruce trunks. Furthermore, overall bacterial community composition was strongly affected by season under deciduous trees.
authors.affiliation: Department of Genomic and Applied Microbiology and Göttingen Genomics Laboratory, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, Georg-August University Göttingen, Germany.
authors.forename: Heiko
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nacke
authors.affiliation: Department of Soil Ecology, UFZ-Helmholtz Centre for Environmental ResearchHalle, Germany; Department of Biology II, University of LeipzigLeipzig, Germany.
authors.forename: Kezia
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Goldmann
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry Jena, Germany.
authors.forename: Ingo
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Schöning
authors.affiliation: Department of Genomic and Applied Microbiology and Göttingen Genomics Laboratory, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, Georg-August University Göttingen, Germany.
authors.forename: Birgit
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Pfeiffer
authors.affiliation: Department of Genomic and Applied Microbiology and Göttingen Genomics Laboratory, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, Georg-August University Göttingen, Germany.
authors.forename: Kristin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kaiser
authors.affiliation: Department of Genomic and Applied Microbiology and Göttingen Genomics Laboratory, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, Georg-August University Göttingen, Germany.
authors.forename: Genis A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Castillo-Villamizar
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Biogeochemistry Jena, Germany.
authors.forename: Marion
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schrumpf
authors.affiliation: Department of Soil Ecology, UFZ-Helmholtz Centre for Environmental ResearchHalle, Germany; German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-LeipzigLeipzig, Germany.
authors.forename: François
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Buscot
authors.affiliation: Department of Genomic and Applied Microbiology and Göttingen Genomics Laboratory, Institute of Microbiology and Genetics, Georg-August University Göttingen, Germany.
authors.forename: Rolf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Daniel
authors.affiliation: Department of Soil Ecology, UFZ-Helmholtz Centre for Environmental ResearchHalle, Germany; German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-LeipzigLeipzig, Germany.
authors.forename: Tesfaye
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Wubet
keywords: bacterial 16S rRNA gene; fungal ITS DNA; horizontal distance from tree trunk; seasons; soil depth; soil microbial community structure; soil properties; tree species