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Exotic Leucaena leucocephala cultivates distinct rhizosphere soil microbial communities from native Albizia kalkora in a dry-hot valley of China

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Rhizosphere microbes play a critical role in plant growth and invasiveness, and plants significantly impact their rhizosphere microbial communities. Legumes are closely related to soil microorganisms; however, the impact of native and exotic legumes on rhizosphere soil microbial communities is not fully understood. The objective of this study was to compare the differences of the rhizosphere microbial communities between native Albizia kalkora and non-native Leucaena leucocephala in a co-established site in Yuanmou dry hot valley of China. Rhizosphere bacterial and fungal community composition, diversity, and soil enzyme activities of A. kalkora and L. leucocephala were analyzed via in situ sampling and a laboratory cultivation experiment. Results showed that there were significant differences in the composition of bacterial communities, and the bacterial alpha diversity of L. leucocephala was significantly lower than that of A. kalkora both in situ sampling and cultivation conditions. Although the composition of soil fungal community showed significant differences in situ sampling, no significant changes occurred in soil fungal community composition and diversity after 80 days of cultivation; but the β-glucosidase activity, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) abundance and amino acid metabolism abundance in L. leucocephala soil were higher than those in A. kalkora soil. Soil properties were the important factors influencing soil bacterial communities, but no correlation was found between fungal communities and soil properties under the same condition. These findings suggest that the invasive L. leucocephala rapidly establishes a distinct rhizosphere microbial community during early establishment that may confer a competitive advantage, which highlights the necessity of exploring the associated feedback effects to unravel the mechanisms of plant invasion.

Source: Frontiers in Microbiology

DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2026.1866484

Authors: Xuemei Wang, Yingyan Wang, Tianzhi Huang, Bangguo Yan, Jixia Zhao, Gangcai Liu