The role of management practices on soil seed bank agrobiodiversity and agronomic sustainability in a horticultural cropping system

Understanding how soil management practices influence the agrobiodiversity of cropping systems is crucial to promoting and maintaining agronomic sustainability in the long term. This study aimed to analyze seed bank diversity and to evaluate the effects of conventional (CONV) and alternative monoculture (ALTMO) and biannual rotation (BIROT) soil management practices in a horticultural cropping system. Soil cores were collected to identify seed bank composition and diversity indices were calculated. Additionally, soil parameters, CO2 efflux, temperature, and moisture were monitored. The results showed that management systems did not influence the composition of soil seed banks showing a prevalence of nitrophilous species in CONV management. Furthermore, the abundance and richness in the CONV and BIROT managements were high and low respectively due to the higher nitrogen rates in the soil. In contrast, ALTMO showed low abundance and a high number of species favoring higher competitiveness with positive effects on crop productivity. A positive correlation between CO2 soil efflux and temperature with species richness and Simpson’s diversity index was observed in all management systems while the soil moisture was negatively influenced. Finally, adopting alternative management strategies can preserve and enhance agrobiodiversity, and crop yields, and may contribute to developing more eco-friendly cropping systems.