Impact of Long-Term Paddy Monoculture on Soil Microbial Diversity and Soil Macronutrients

This study investigated the long-term impacts of paddy monoculture on soil health in Tanjung Karang, Malaysia, through integrated physicochemical and metagenomic analyses, with comparisons to a pristine Raja Musa Forest Reserve (RMFR) reference site. Our findings demonstrate that prolonged monoculture significantly alters soil physicochemical properties of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, thereby creating a distinct edaphic environment. Metagenomic analyses revealed a substantial increase in microbial diversity and richness in monocultured paddy soils compared to RMFR, with specific taxonomic groups becoming dominant. Crucially, functional annotation highlighted significant shifts in the abundance of genes associated with nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium metabolism, underscoring the adaptive responses of the soil microbiome to continuous cultivation pressures and their influence on critical nutrient cycling processes.