Soil legacy effects on crop disease resistance, pollinator diet quality and pollinator behavior

Monday, November 14, 2022

11:18 AM – 11:30 AM PT

Location: Vancouver Convention Centre, Meeting Room 206

Presenting Author(s)

JD

Julie K. Davis

PhD Candidate
Cornell University
Ithaca, New York

Co-Author(s)

Zoe Getman-Pickering

Postdoctoral Scientist
George Washington University
Hadley, Massachusetts
HG

Heather Grab

Cornell University
Ithaca, New York
RM

Ryan Maher

Cornell University
Ithaca, New York
CP

Christopher Pelzer

Cornell University
Ithaca, New York
AR

Anu Rangarajan

Cornell University
Ithaca, New York
MR

Matthew Ryan

Cornell University
Ithaca, New York
TU

Todd Ugine

Cornell University
Ithaca, New York
JT

Jennifer Thaler

Professor
Cornell University
Ithaca, New York

Agriculture depends on ecosystem services, and simultaneously, agricultural practices can impact these services. Long-term soil management (“soil legacy”) affects crop pests and yields, but effects on pollinators are poorly understood. We examined whether soil management legacy (e.g., nutrient input) alters floral traits and pollinator visitation, possibly mediated by crop pests. In a common garden, we grew squash in soils collected from organic plots with high or low nutrient legacy, and from conventional plots with a synthetic or green manure nutrient legacy. We measured herbivory, crop disease and pollinator visitation. Path analysis suggested that organic and high nutrient soils promote flower and bee abundance by reducing powdery mildew. To determine whether these correlations were causal, we separately inoculated plants with powdery mildew, and confirmed that compared with conventional soil, organic soil promotes powdery mildew resistance, and affects floral abundance, morphology, and pollen and nectar quality, sometimes depending on powdery mildew. We conclude that long-term soil management practices could benefit ecosystem services in previously unexplored ways.