1. Plant and soil microbial diversities are linked through a range of interactions, including the exchange of carbon and nutrients but also herbivory and pathogenic effects. Over time, associations between plant communities and their soil microbiota may strengthen and become more specific, resulting in stronger associations between plant and soil microbial diversity.
2. We tested this hypothesis at the end of a 4-year field experiment in 48 plots with different plant species compositions established 13 years earlier in a biodiversity experiment in Jena, Germany. We factorially crossed plant community history (old vs. new plant communities) and soil legacy (old vs. new soil) with plant diversity (species richness levels 1, 2, 4 and 8, each with 12 different species compositions). We use the term ‘plant community history’ to refer to the co-occurrence history of plants in different species compositions in the Jena Experiment. We determined soil bacterial and fungal community composition in terms of operational taxonomic units (OTUs) using 16S rRNA gene and ITS DNA sequencing.
3. Plant community history (old plants) did not affect overall soil community composition but differentially affected bacterial richness and abundances of specific bacterial taxa in association with specific plant species compositions. Soil legacy (old soil) markedly increased soil bacterial richness and evenness and decreased fungal evenness. Soil fungal richness increased with plant species richness, regardless of plant community history or soil legacy, with the strongest difference between plant monocultures and mixtures. Specific plant species compositions and functional groups were associated with specific bacterial and fungal community compositions. Grasses increased fungal richness and evenness and legumes decreased fungal evenness, but bacterial diversity was not affected.
4. Synthesis. Our findings indicate that as experimental ecosystems varying in plant diversity develop over time (2002–2010), plant species associate with specific soil microbial taxa. This can have long-lasting effects on below-ground community composition in re-assembled plant communities, as reflected in strong soil legacy signals still visible after 4 years (2011–2015). Effects of plant community history on soil communities are subtle and may take longer to fully develop.

中文翻译：

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植物群落历史、土壤遗产和植物多样性对土壤微生物群落的影响

1. 植物和土壤微生物多样性通过一系列相互作用联系在一起，包括碳和养分的交换，以及食草和致病作用。随着时间的推移，植物群落与其土壤微生物群之间的关联可能会加强并变得更加具体，从而导致植物与土壤微生物多样性之间的关联更强。
2. 我们在 13 年前在德国耶拿的生物多样性实验中建立的 48 个具有不同植物物种组成的地块的 4 年田间试验结束时检验了这一假设。我们将植物群落历史（旧与新植物群落）和土壤遗产（旧与新土壤）与植物多样性（物种丰富度水平 1、2、4 和 8，每个具有 12 种不同的物种组成）进行因子交叉。我们使用术语“植物群落历史”来指代耶拿实验中不同物种组成中植物的共生历史。我们使用 16S rRNA 基因和 ITS DNA 测序根据操作分类单位 (OTU) 确定了土壤细菌和真菌群落组成。
3. 植物群落历史（旧植物）不影响整体土壤群落组成，但对与特定植物物种组成相关的特定细菌分类群的细菌丰富度和丰度有不同的影响。土壤遗留物（旧土壤）显着增加了土壤细菌的丰富度和均匀度，并降低了真菌的均匀度。土壤真菌丰富度随着植物物种丰富度而增加，无论植物群落历史或土壤遗产如何，植物单一栽培和混合物之间的差异最大。特定的植物物种组成和功能组与特定的细菌和真菌群落组成有关。草增加了真菌的丰富度和均匀度，豆科植物降低了真菌的均匀度，但细菌多样性不受影响。
4. 合成。我们的研究结果表明，随着时间的推移（2002-2010 年），随着植物多样性变化的实验生态系统的发展，植物物种与特定的土壤微生物分类群相关联。这可能对重新组装的植物群落中的地下群落组成产生长期影响，正如 4 年后（2011-2015 年）仍然可见的强烈土壤遗留信号所反映的那样。植物群落历史对土壤群落的影响是微妙的，可能需要更长的时间才能完全发展。