# Ecological Modules Link Soil Aggregate Stability, Chemical Properties and Fungal Communities Under Plant Species‐Based Revegetation

## TL;DR

This study shows how different native grassland plants affect soil stability and fungal communities through distinct ecological pathways.

## Contribution

The study reveals modular linkages between soil properties and fungal trophic modes under plant-based restoration.

## Key findings

- Soil chemical properties correlate with symbiotic fungi-dominated modules.
- Soil aggregate stability and chemical properties are linked to pathogenic fungi-dominated modules.
- Saprophytic fungi-dominated modules show no connection to soil properties.

## Abstract

The establishment of native grassland species is widely implemented on abandoned land as a strategy to restore degraded soils. However, its effects on soil properties are highly species‐specific, as plant‐driven physicochemical changes subsequently reshape microbial community structure. The linkages between soil physicochemical properties and microbial communities following native grassland establishment remain poorly understood. To address this knowledge gap, we examined the effects of 11 native grassland species on soil physicochemical properties and fungal community structure. Using co‐occurrence network analysis, we elucidate how plants drive fungal community reorganisation through soil‐mediated trophic pathways. The results showed that soil aggregate stability, chemical properties, and fungal communities differed significantly among the 11 species. Soil chemical properties, such as pH and EC, correlated with symbiotic fungi dominated modules; both soil aggregate stability and chemical properties were linked to pathogenic fungi dominated modules, while saprophytic fungi dominated modules displayed no linkage to either soil aggregate stability or chemical properties. These findings establish that fungal trophic modes govern species‐dependent restoration outcomes via modular soil–microbe linkages, thereby offering predictive frameworks for species‐specific management of abandoned soils.

Under plant species‐based revegetation, network analysis revealed that fungal communities exhibited modular responses to variations in soil aggregates and chemical properties. Soil chemical properties shaped symbiotic fungi‐dominated modules; soil aggregates and chemical properties shaped pathogenic fungi‐dominated modules; while saprophytic fungi‐dominated modules were unaffected by either factor.