Short communicationHairy vetch (Vicia villosa), as a green manure, increases fungal biomass, fungal community composition, and phosphatase activity in soil

•Hairy vetch, as a green manure, stimulated fungal activity in soil.•Fungal diversity increased after the incorporation of hairy vetch.•A Cladosporium sp. increased specifically after the incorporation of hairy vetch.•Phosphatase activity in soil increased with increasing fungal proliferation.•Fungal activity may be used as a biological indicator during soil management.

The use of organic matter, rather than chemical fertilizers, is recommended for sustainable agriculture. The use of green manure is an environmentally friendly technique that is used to manage soil quality, and it has the potential to reduce the dependence on mineral fertilizers and to maintain soil organic matter content. A lysimeter facility, with 25-m2 (5 m × 5 m) plots that were distributed randomly in blocks, was used in this study. Four experimental plots, chemical fertilizer, non-green manure, hairy vetch (Vicia villosa), and hairy vetch and a Crotalaria sp. (crop rotation), were set up in this lysimeter. The incorporation of hairy vetch as a green manure was conducted in April 2014, and we investigated its effects on fungal biomass, fungal diversity, the rate of phosphate-solubilizing fungi and soil phosphatase activity. Hairy vetch stimulated the activity of soil fungi by increasing fungal biomass and diversity, when compared with chemical fertilizer and non-green manure. Additionally, hairy vetch incorporation increased the abundance of a Cladosporium sp., as well as phosphatase activity in soil. To date, although studies of the incorporation of green manure have mainly focused on roles of bacteria, our results suggest that soil fungal activity could provide a reliable biological indicator, useful in assessing the effect of green manure fertilization.