Effects of vermicomposting and relay intercropping on plant-soil-microbial interactions and associated agroecosystem services

This thesis reports the findings of two field experiments involving durum wheat-lentil relay intercropping and vermicompost application that were carried out in Pisa, Italy in 2019, 2020, and 2021 in separate fields that were managed to simulate rain-fed low-input systems. The general structure of this thesis consists of five chapters; the general introduction structured as chapter one, which provides a synthesis and research framework of the two experiments undertaken in this study. Chapter two assessed the effect of relay intercropping on the agronomic performance and competitiveness of winter durum wheat and spring lentil comparing different crop stand types (monocrop vs intercrop) and target plant densities (350 plants m2—100%Mix-high vs 116 plants m2—33%Mix-low). Chapter three aimed at investigating the influence of intercropping and crop species on the activity, community structure, and diversity of mycorrhizal communities colonizing the plant roots, comparing different crop stand types and target plant densities. Chapter four aimed at investigating the biostimulatory effect of liquid vermicompost extract application on soil mycorrhizal inoculum potential, AMF root colonization and productivity of berseem clover, lentil and sunflower, while chapter five focused on the general discussion, perspectives and limitations based on the key findings of each experiment