UNDERSTANDING THE IMPACT OF FUNGICIDES ON LOWBUSH BLUEBERRY SOIL ECOLOGY THROUGH MICROBIOME METHODS

Abstract

Lowbush blueberries are an economically significant crop produced by managing naturally occurring populations. As such, they have an intimate relationship with the soil microbiome and depend on it for their health and productivity. Fungicides are important to reduce disease pressure but pose a potential risk to soil health. Metagenomic methods are a powerful set of tools to understand the nature of these plant-microbiome interactions and the ways in which fungicides affect them. This thesis contains the findings of two studies comparing fungal and bacterial populations of soils treated with fungicides to those of untreated soils, using amplicon sequencing. In both, significant changes to the soil ecosystem were found as a result of fungicide treatment. While the specific findings of the studies differed; their combined results suggest that changes to soil ecosystems occur due to fungicide application, and that further research is needed to understand its long-term effects on soil health.