Application of Broccoli Residues to Soil can Suppress Verticillium Wilt of Cotton by Regulating the Bacterial Community Structure of the Rhizosphere
Abstract [Aims] Verticillium wilt (VW) of cotton was effectively controlled by application of broccoli residues (BR) to soil. Information regarding the variation in bacterial communities in rhizosphere of cotton cultivars with different VW resistance levels under BR treatment is still lacking and finally to provide guidance for screening effective biocontrol bacteria. [Methods] Real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR was used to determine the population of Verticillium dahliae, the effects of BR on the bacterial community structure in rhizosphere were determined by high-throughput sequencing technology. [Results] Results showed that control effects for susceptible cultivar (cv. EJ-1) and resistant cultivar (cv. J863) on VW after BR treatment were 51.76% and 86.15%, the population of V. dahliae decreased by 18.88% and 30.27%, respectively. High-throughput sequencing showed that ACE and Chao1 indices were increased by application of BR. Actinobacteria, Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Gemmatimonadetes, Acidobacteria, and Firmicutes were the most dominant phyla, and relative abundances of these bacterial taxa significantly differed between cultivars. Additionally, Bacillus stably increased in rhizosphere following BR treatment. Redundancy analysis (RDA) showed that relative abundances of Bacillus, Lysobacter, Streptomyces, Rubrobacter, Gemmatimonas, Bryobacter and Nocardioides were correlated with occurrence of VW. Field experiments demonstrated that dressing cotton seeds with Bacillus subtilis NCD-2 could successfully reduce occurrence of VW, and control effects for EJ-1 and J863 were 35.26% and 31.02%, respectively. [Conclusions] The application of BR changed the bacterial community structure in cotton rhizosphere, decreased the population of V. dahliae in soil, and increased the abundance of beneficial microorganisms, thus significantly reducing the occurrence of VW.