Bamboo Cultivation and Soil Amendments

Dendrocalamus farinosus potted plants were grown at the experimental base (location: 31°32 ‘44 “N, 104°41′ 402″ E, altitude 480 m) of the College of Life Science and Engineering, Southwest University of Science and Technology, Mianyang, Sichuan Province. Topsoil (0–20 cm depth) was obtained from the test site and screened to remove rock and plant litter. The soil contained 37% silt, 36% clay, and 27% sand. The soil physical and chemical properties were as follows: pH 6.49 ± 0.01, electrical conductivity 112.93 ± 1.06 μS·cm⁻¹, total carbon content: 1220 ± 102 mg kg⁻¹, total organic carbon content: 511 ± 12 mg kg⁻¹, total nitrogen content: 353 ± 11 mg kg⁻¹, total phosphorus content: 180 ± 9 mg kg⁻¹, available nitrogen content: 142 ± 11 mg kg⁻¹, available phosphorus content: 22.4 ± 7.3 mg kg⁻¹.
Three fertilizers were used in this study. The organic fertilizer (organic matter ≥45%, N + P₂O₅ + K₂O ≥ 5%, N [1.4%], P [4.5%], K [1.7%]) was purchased from Henan Lotus Environmental Technology Fertilizer Corporation (Henan, China). The B. mucilaginosus microbial fertilizer (microbial agent, 10 billion colony forming units [CFU]/g) was purchased from Huanwei Biology; B. mucilaginosus decomposes K, Si, and P from soil minerals such as feldspar, mica, and apatite, thus increasing K and P supply to the soil and ultimately crop yields (Liu et al., 2006 (link)). The B. amyloliquefaciens microbial fertilizer (microbial agent, 100 billion CFU/g) was purchased from Nongbao Biology; B. amyloliquefaciens is a typical plant-growth-promoting rhizobacterium (PGPR), which promotes plant growth and improves nitrogen use efficiency (Xue et al., 2021 (link)).