Soil structure and aggregation are crucial for soil functionality, particularly under drought conditions. Saprobic soil fungi, known for their resilience in low moisture conditions, are recognized for their influence on soil aggregate dynamics. In this study, we explored the potential of fungal amendments to enhance soil aggregation and hydrological properties across different moisture regimes. We used a selection of 29 fungal isolates, recovered from soils treated under drought conditions and varying in colony density and growth rate, for single‐strain inoculation into sterilized soil microcosms under either low or high moisture (≤−0.96 and –0.03 MPa, respectively). After 8 weeks, we assessed soil aggregate formation and stability, along with soil properties such as soil water content, water hydrophobicity, sorptivity, total fungal biomass and water potential. Our findings indicate that fungal inoculation altered soil hydrological properties and improved soil aggregation, with effects varying based on the fungal strains and soil moisture levels. We found a positive correlation between fungal biomass and enhanced soil aggregate formation and stabilization, achieved by connecting soil particles via hyphae and modifying soil aggregate sorptivity. The improvement in soil water potential was observed only when the initial moisture level was not critical for fungal activity. Overall, our results highlight the potential of using fungal inoculation to improve the structure of agricultural soil under drought conditions, thereby introducing new possibilities for soil management in the context of climate change.

中文翻译：

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在不同的湿度条件下通过真菌改良剂增强土壤团聚和物理特性

土壤结构和团聚对于土壤功能至关重要，特别是在干旱条件下。腐生土壤真菌以其在低湿度条件下的恢复能力而闻名，因其对土壤团聚动力学的影响而闻名。在这项研究中，我们探索了真菌改良剂在不同湿度条件下增强土壤聚集和水文特性的潜力。我们选择了 29 种真菌分离株，这些分离株是从干旱条件下处理的土壤中回收的，菌落密度和生长速率各不相同，在低湿度或高湿度（分别≤−0.96 和 –0.03 MPa）下将单菌株接种到灭菌土壤微观世界中。 ）。 8周后，我们评估了土壤团聚体的形成和稳定性，以及土壤特性，如土壤含水量、水疏水性、吸着性、总真菌生物量和水势。我们的研究结果表明，真菌接种改变了土壤水文特性并改善了土壤聚集，其影响因真菌菌株和土壤湿度水平而异。我们发现真菌生物量与增强的土壤团聚体形成和稳定性之间存在正相关性，这是通过菌丝连接土壤颗粒并改变土壤团聚体吸附性来实现的。仅当初始湿度水平对真菌活动并不重要时，才能观察到土壤水势的改善。总的来说，我们的结果强调了在干旱条件下使用真菌接种来改善农业土壤结构的潜力，从而为气候变化背景下的土壤管理带来新的可能性。