Effects of Compound Fertilizer Decrement and Water-Soluble Humic Acid Fertilizer Application on Soil Properties, Bacterial Community Structure, and Shoot Yield in Lei Bamboo (Phyllostachys praecox) Plantations in Subtropical China
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsDear colleagues!
Thank you so much for the opportunity to read the article and write a review. I really hope that thanks to my review, the article will be even more interesting, more "deep" in scientific terms and understandable for scientists who work in this field and related fields of knowledge.
As is known, the process of soil humus synthesis is a gradual and balanced formation of a complementary combination of various compounds (proteins, lipids, carbohydrates), as well as macro- and microelements (carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, chalk, zinc, etc.). If one of them is not stable/ excessive, this process may be disrupted, and Consequently, there is a change in the direction of transmorphomation of organic and organo-mineral matter of soils, and the synthesis of humus. Against the background of anthropogenic impact, there is a violation of the rhythms of intake-mineralization of organic matter, a change in the humus-forming process. In agriculture, attempts are being made to change the trophic status of soils when applying fertilizers. However, unfortunately, positive results are not always obtained, so the search for compensatory compounds that may be precursors of humus substances continues constantly. On perennial bamboo plantations, soil depletion is possible even with balanced land use and a sufficiently high level of solar energy and moisture supply to the ecosystem. The reason for this may be a change in the composition and structure of the microbiocenosis: the monotonous composition of the microbial community, the dominance of toxin-forming biotypes, and a change in enzymatic activity. In this regard, it is necessary to study this problem in various aspects. However, despite the fact that there is a lot of information on this issue, there are unresolved issues that the proposed article can help solve.
In general, the article makes a very good impression, it is easy to read, the figures and tables are very informative. The general theoretical basis of the work performed is very good, which allows us to speak about its high quality. It should be emphasized that a very impressive list of references (59 sources) indicates a fairly good study of the topic, and therefore a correctly drawn conclusion based on the data obtained.
There are comments in the article, which are presented below.
5 -I suggest specifying the place of work in parentheses in the title
15 - where the study was conducted
16- bacterial community- specify identification methods
21 is an abbreviation of words...write the full word
28- at the end, write where the results can be used
29 -Lei bomboo (it is in the title of the article), it is not necessary to specify
35 - I did not understand why it is grown, write in more detail, it is interesting for scientists from other countries
48- they did not write anything about microorganisms
68- I did not understand the sentence, I need to explain or write in more detail
81 - and that's it, the end? Have you used urease and phosphatase in your work? Why were these enzymes chosen? A little bit about them? Their relationship with microorganisms and how are they related to humic acids?
82-93 – good
102 - yellow soils (specify according to which classification?), is it possible to give their morphological structure? is it possible to briefly present their properties?
Table 1 - SF1- what is it?and so on in the table. It is necessary to write very clearly in objects
152-155. It is very poorly written!!!Specify the class of enzymes that you define, you need to write everything in detail!!! Do you have extracellular activity? what was the quality of control in determining?
171- are there no links here? this is a very important part of the job!
194- plantation or forest...it should be uniform
192- why, HOWEVER?
Figure 2 - very small
figure 3 is small, but very good information, effective
figure 4 - I recommend specifying the type of statistical processing
figure 5 is very small and fuzzy...But, the drawing is informative
300- very good, everything is signed, everything is clear
figure 8 - the figure is more clearly visible ...
299 - this type of statistics is not specified in the methods! or is it a coefficient? I did not understand at all from the article, I need to clarify..
367- You write about other researchers, but your assumptions about a decrease in urease activity are interesting
367- make a paragraph, there is a description of another enzyme
390 and 403, 419 are preliminary data...Maybe I shouldn't write about it? something turns out to be very vague
425 is the factor...can it be described in methods?
443- unfortunately, the drawings are not very clear and the names were not visible...sorry
456- write where you can recommend using the received data
Once again, I want to express my gratitude for an interesting, very good article, I hope it will be of interest to the international community!!!
Comments on the Quality of English Language
This article is written very clearly, the sentences are very clear, there are no questions when reading.All terms are used correctly. I think that scientists from other countries will also have no problems reading the article. I would also like to note that specialists in related specialties will also have no questions when reading the article.
Author Response
Comment 1: 5 -I suggest specifying the place of work in parentheses in the title
Response: Our work was in Zhejiang Province of subtropical China. We have added the words ”of subtropical China” in the title.
Comment 2: 15 - where the study was conducted
Response: The study was conducted at the village of Minjin, Deqing County, Huzhou City, Zhejiang Province, China. We have added the words ”of subtropical China” in line 16.
Comment 3: 16- bacterial community- specify identification methods
Response: We have added the methods in line 17-18. bacterial community structure was determined with high-throughput sequencing method.
Comment 4: 21 is an abbreviation of words...write the full word
Response: We have added the full words in line 21-24. water-soluble humic acid fertilizer addition increased soil organic carbon (SOC), available hos-phorus (AP), and microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN) contents, the ratio of SOC to total nitrogen (C/N), and sucrase and acid phosphatase (Acp) activities, and decreased alkali hydrolyzed nitro-gen (AN) and microbial biomass carbon (MBC) contents.
Comment 5: 28- at the end, write where the results can be used
Response: We have added the results can be used in line 30-32. An improved understanding of humic acid may be critical for the development of chemical fertilizer decrement applications, Lei bamboo forest productivity, and bamboo shoot yield improvement.
Comment 6: 29 -Lei bomboo (it is in the title of the article), it is not necessary to specify
Response: Thanks. We have delete the words of Lei bomboo.
Comment 7: 35 - I did not understand why it is grown, write in more detail, it is interesting for scientists from other countries
Response: We have added the sentence in line 38-40. It is a fast-growing forest resource which can reproduce asexually through its rhizome with many buds. These buds can develop into bamboo in the spring and summer, or shoots are harvested when edible in the spring.
Comment 8: 48- they did not write anything about microorganisms
Response: We have added the sentences about microorganisms in line 54-55. resulting in declining fertility, soil erosion, reduction of microbial community diversity and eutrophication of water systems.
Comment 9: 68- I did not understand the sentence, I need to explain or write in more detail
Response: We have changed the sentence in line 72-73. Meanwhile, humic acids also play an important role in soil remediation and improvement.
Comment 10: 81 - and that's it, the end? Have you used urease and phosphatase in your work? Why were these enzymes chosen? A little bit about them? Their relationship with microorganisms and how are they related to humic acids?
Response: We have added the sentences in line 84-89. Urease is closely related to soil nitrogen cycling, and its activity can reflect soil nitrogen supply capacity. Sucrase is related to the hydrolysis of sugars and can catalyze the hydrolysis of sucrose into glucose and fructose. Acid phosphatase is involved in the cycle of phosphorus and is related to the hydrolysis of organic phosphorus and the activation of inorganic phosphorus. Soil enzymes are secreted by microorganisms, which can utilize humic acid to alter enzyme secretion.
Comment 11: 82-93 – good
Response: Thanks.
Comment 12: 102 - yellow soils (specify according to which classification?), is it possible to give their morphological structure? is it possible to briefly present their properties?
Response: Sorry, the soil is red soil and it originates from granitic rock. We have changed the sentence in line 119.
Comment 13: Table 1 - SF1- what is it?and so on in the table. It is necessary to write very clearly in objects
Response: We have added the sentence below the Table 1. CF1 and CF2 = compound fertilizers; CF2HA1 and CF2HA2 = compound fertilizers + water-soluble humic acid fertilizers.
Comment 14: 152-155. It is very poorly written!!!Specify the class of enzymes that you define, you need to write everything in detail!!! Do you have extracellular activity? what was the quality of control in determining?
Response: Thanks. We have changed the sentence in line 176-179. Urease activity was measured using sodium phenol-sodium hypochlorite colorimetry, and was expressed as the amount of NH4+-N per gram of soil after 24h. Sucrase activity using 3,5-dinitrosalicylic acid colorimetry, and was expressed as the amount of sodium thiosulfate (0.1 mol·L-1) of soil after 24h.
Comment 15: 171- are there no links here? this is a very important part of the job!
Response: Thanks. We have changed the sentence in line 191-193.
The library is subjected to quality inspection using the Qsep-400 method, and the constructed library is sequenced using Illumina Novaseq6000.
Comment 16: 194- plantation or forest...it should be uniform
Response: Thanks. We have corrected the word.
Comment 17: 192- why, HOWEVER?
Response: We have changed the sentence in line 212-213. However, no significant differences of MBC/MBN ratios were observed between CF1 and CF2.
Comment 18: Figure 2 - very small
figure 3 is small, but very good information, effective
figure 4 - I recommend specifying the type of statistical processing
figure 5 is very small and fuzzy...But, the drawing is informative
Response: Thanks. We have changed the figures 2-5.
Comment 19: 300- very good, everything is signed, everything is clear
Response: Thanks.
Comment 20: figure 8 - the figure is more clearly visible ...
Response: Thanks. We have changed the figure 8.
Comment 21: 299 - this type of statistics is not specified in the methods! or is it a coefficient? I did not understand at all from the article, I need to clarify.
Response: Table 4 provides a detailed explanation of Figure 7, which is the specific data obtained from RDA. We have added the method in line 197-199.
Comment 22: 367- You write about other researchers, but your assumptions about a decrease in urease activity are interesting
Response: Thanks.
Comment 23: 367- make a paragraph, there is a description of another enzyme
Response: Thanks. We have added the sentence about another enzyme in line 417-419. Soil sucrase can catalyze the conversion of sugars into glucose and fructose, and participate in the mineralization of organic carbon, and its activity is closely related to the decomposition and transformation of SOC.
Comment 24: 390 and 403, 419 are preliminary data...Maybe I shouldn't write about it? something turns out to be very vague
Response: Line 390 and 419 are similar to the research results of other researchers. Line 403 is similar to our previous research results. Therefore, we have cited them here.
Comment 25: 425 is the factor...can it be described in methods?
Response: Thanks. Environmental factors refer to the soil physicochemical properties and enzymatic activities. We have added the sentence in line 483.
Comment 26: 443- unfortunately, the drawings are not very clear and the names were not visible...sorry
Response: sorry. We have changed the figure 3.
Comment 27: 456- write where you can recommend using the received data
Response: Thanks. We have added the sentence in line 505-506. The application of humic acid water-soluble fertilizer is of great significance for soil improvement, ecological restoration, and sustainable management of bamboo forests in the future.
Reviewer 2 Report
Comments and Suggestions for Authors
The manuscript entitled “Effects of compound fertilizer decrement and water-soluble humic acid fertilizer application on soil properties, bacterial community structure, and shoot yield in Lei bamboo (Phyllostachys praecox) plantations” was reviewed. This manuscript has investigated an interesting topic. However, the text of the abstract, methodology, and results need revisions according to the following comments. The discussion part of the manuscript has a logical and coherent structure and is prepared properly. The following comments are provided for editing the manuscript:
1) The abstract: The number of treatments and their names should be clearly mentioned in the abstract.
2) Lines 21, 22: The full form of the abbreviations (SOC, AP, …) must be presented, and the acronyms should be placed in parentheses at their first presentation in the text.
3) Line 25: “Ap” be changed to “AP”.
4) Line 28: The full form of the abbreviation Acp be presented. The acronym (Acp) be included in parentheses.
5) Line 122: t/hm2 be changed to t/ha.
6) Line 134: The full form of the abbreviation TOC should be presented. The acronym (TOC) be included in parentheses.
7) Line 180, 181: ‘…those of CF1 and CF2HA1’ be changed to ‘those of CF1, CF2, and CF2HA1’.
8) Line 181-183: The sentence ‘Compared with … respectively.’ is not correct. Because according to Table 2, the value of TN is the highest in CF1; the value of TP in CF2HA1 (3.12) is not higher than in CF1 (3.37); and the value of AN in CF1 (502.33) is higher than other treatments.
9) Line 185: The statement of ‘…and CF2 exhibited the highest C/N ratio’ is not correct because the highest ratio of C/N (22.14) belongs to CF2HA2 (according to Table 2).
10) L 224, 225: The statement of ‘CF2HA1 and CF2HA2 showed significantly increased Acp activity compared with that of CF1 and CF2.’ is not correct because CF2HA1 is in class b, and is not significantly different from CF1 in terms of Acp activity.
11) Line 285: ‘Figure 7’ should be changed to ‘Figure 8’.
12) Line 347: “Li et al (2013)” be changed to “Li et al. [41]”, and the reference number at the end of the sentence be removed.
13) The resolution of figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 is not suitable, especially in terms of letters and words inserted in the figures.
14) Figure 6: The meaning of the stars inserted in the figure should be explained in the caption.
15) Table 4 is not mentioned in the text of the results.
Author Response
Reviewer #2:
Comments and Suggestions for Authors
The manuscript entitled “Effects of compound fertilizer decrement and water-soluble humic acid fertilizer application on soil properties, bacterial community structure, and shoot yield in Lei bamboo (Phyllostachys praecox) plantations” was reviewed. This manuscript has investigated an interesting topic. However, the text of the abstract, methodology, and results need revisions according to the following comments. The discussion part of the manuscript has a logical and coherent structure and is prepared properly. The following comments are provided for editing the manuscript:
Comment 1: The abstract: The number of treatments and their names should be clearly mentioned in the abstract.
Response: Thanks. We have added the number of treatments and their names in the abstracrt in line 21.
Comment 2: Lines 21, 22: The full form of the abbreviations (SOC, AP, …) must be presented, and the acronyms should be placed in parentheses at their first presentation in the text.
Response: Thanks. We have added the full words in line 21-24. water-soluble humic acid fertilizer addition increased soil organic carbon (SOC), available hos-phorus (AP), and microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN) contents, the ratio of SOC to total nitrogen (C/N), and sucrase and acid phosphatase (Acp) activities, and decreased alkali hydrolyzed nitro-gen (AN) and microbial biomass carbon (MBC) contents.
Comment 3: Line 25: “Ap” be changed to “AP”.
Response: Thanks. We have changed the “Ap” to “AP”.
Comment 4: Line 28: The full form of the abbreviation Acp be presented. The acronym (Acp) be included in parentheses.
Response: Thanks. We have added the Acp in the above manuscript in line 23.
Comment 5: Line 122: t/hm2 be changed to t/ha.
Response: Thanks. We have changed the t/hm2 to t/ha.
Comment 6: Line 134: The full form of the abbreviation TOC should be presented. The acronym (TOC) be included in parentheses.
Response: Thanks. We have corrected it in line 148-149. SOC was measured using a total organic carbon (TOC) analyzer (Multi N/C3100; Analytik, Jena, Germany).
Comment 7: Line 180, 181: ‘…those of CF1 and CF2HA1’ be changed to ‘those of CF1, CF2, and CF2HA1’.
Response: Thanks. We have changed ‘those of CF1 and CF2HA1’ to ‘those of CF1, CF2, and CF2HA1’.
Comment 8: Line 181-183: The sentence ‘Compared with … respectively.’ is not correct. Because according to Table 2, the value of TN is the highest in CF1; the value of TP in CF2HA1 (3.12) is not higher than in CF1 (3.37); and the value of AN in CF1 (502.33) is higher than other treatments.
Response: Sorry. We have correct the sentence in line 187-188. Compared with CF1, the SOC content of CF2HA1 and CF2HA2 significantly increased by 11.04% and 17.56%, respectively.
Comment 9: Line 185: The statement of ‘…and CF2 exhibited the highest C/N ratio’ is not correct because the highest ratio of C/N (22.14) belongs to CF2HA2 (according to Table 2).
Response: Sorry. We have correct the sentence in line 190. CF2HA2 exhibited the highest C/N ratio.
Comment 10: L 224, 225: The statement of ‘CF2HA1 and CF2HA2 showed significantly increased Acp activity compared with that of CF1 and CF2.’ is not correct because CF2HA1 is in class b, and is not significantly different from CF1 in terms of Acp activity.
Response: Sorry. We have correct the sentence in line 219. CF2HA1 and CF2HA2 showed significantly increased Acp activity compared with that of CF2.
Comment 11: Line 285: ‘Figure 7’ should be changed to ‘Figure 8’.
Response: Thanks. We have changed the ‘Figure 7’ to ‘Figure 8’.
Comment 12: Line 347: “Li et al (2013)” be changed to “Li et al. [41]”, and the reference number at the end of the sentence be removed.
Response:
Comment 13: The resolution of figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7 is not suitable, especially in terms of letters and words inserted in the figures.
Response: Thanks. We have corrected it.
Comment 14: Figure 6: The meaning of the stars inserted in the figure should be explained in the caption.
Response: Thanks. We have added the meaning of the stars below the figure 6. *p <0.05; **p <0.01; ***p <0.001.
Comment 15: Table 4 is not mentioned in the text of the results.
Response: Table 4 provides a detailed explanation of Figure 7, which is the specific data obtained from RDA. We have added the table 4 in line 279.
