Biochar in combination with Piriformospora indica can alter the bacterial community structure of the rhizosphere soil and stimulate the root to secrete metabolites in Albic soil maize

As a typical low-yielding croplands, Albic soil seriously restricts the sustainable use of arable land resources, and upgrading Albic soil's fertility and achieving production capacity enhancement has become a key issue that needs to be solved urgently. In this study, by means of the addition of biochar and Piriformospora indica in combination with 16S rRNA sequencing and untargeted metabolomics, we investigated the interactions between rhizosphere microbes and metabolites in maize under control (CK), biochar addition (BC), inoculation with P. indica (PI), and biochar and P. indica combination (BP), and effects on maize biomass, photosynthetic parameters and root growth indicators.