We mathematically model the uptake of phosphorus by a soil community consisting of a plant and two bacterial groups: copiotrophs and oligotrophs. Four equilibrium states emerge, one for each of the species monopolising the resource and dominating the community and one with coexistence of all species. We show that the dynamics are controlled by the ratio of chemical adsorption to bacterial death permitting either oscillatory states or quasi-steady uptake. We show how a steady state can emerge which has soil and plant nutrient content unresponsive to increased fertilization. However, the additional fertilization supports the copiotrophs leading to community reassembly. Our results demonstrate the importance of time-series measurements in nutrient uptake experiments.

我们在数学上模拟了由植物和两个细菌群组成的土壤群落对磷的吸收，这些菌群是嗜营养菌和寡营养菌。出现了四个平衡状态，每个平衡状态都垄断了资源并支配着整个社区，一个平衡状态则与所有物种共存。我们表明动力学是由化学吸附与细菌死亡的比率控制的，从而允许振荡状态或准稳态吸收。我们展示了如何出现一种稳定状态，该状态的土壤和植物养分含量对施肥没有反应。但是，额外的施肥会支持嗜食菌，从而导致群落重组。我们的结果证明了时间序列测量在养分吸收实验中的重要性。