Linking Soil Microbial Functional Profiles to Fungal Disease Resistance in Winter Barley Under Different...

Barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) is a major fodder crop whose productivity is often reduced by phytopathogens, especially during early growth. Understanding how soil fertility management and microbial communities influence disease outcomes is critical for developing sustainable strategies that reduce fungicide dependence and enhance crop resilience. This study evaluated the resistance of the winter barley cultivar "Zemela" to powdery mildew (Blumeria graminis f. sp. hordei), brown rust (Puccinia hordei), and net blotch (Pyrenophora teres f. maculata). The crop was cultivated under two soil management systems-green manure and conventional-and five fertilisation regimes: mineral, vermicompost, combined, biochar, and control. Phytopathological assessment was integrated with functional predictions of soil microbial communities. Field trials showed high resistance to powdery mildew (RI = 95%) and brown rust (RI = 82.5%), and moderate resistance to net blotch (RI = 60%). While ANOVA indicated no significant treatment effects (p > 0.05), PCA explained 82.3% of the variance, revealing clear clustering of microbial community functions by soil management system and highlighting the strong influence of fertilisation practices on disease-related microbial dynamics. FAPROTAX analysis suggested that organic amendments enhanced antifungal functions, whereas conventional systems were dominated by nitrogen cycling. FUNGuild identified higher saprotrophic and mycorrhizal activity under organic and combined treatments, contrasting with greater pathogen abundance in conventional plots. Overall, results demonstrate that soil fertilisation practices, together with microbial functional diversity, play a central role in disease suppression and crop resilience, supporting sustainable barley production with reduced reliance on chemical inputs.