Managing Eupatorium adenophorum through compost conversion

Abstract

Drought stress severely limits crop productivity, urging the development of sustainable strategies to enhance plant resilience. Here, we investigate the combined effect of compost derived from the invasive plant Eupatorium adenophorum and titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TNPs) on the growth and physiological performance of Chinese cabbage ( Brassica rapa var. chinensis) under water deficit. Pot experiments with seven soil treatments revealed that microbial-inoculated E .adenophorum compost combined with TNPs (treatment E) most effectively mitigated drought-induced growth inhibition, improving root architecture, biomass accumulation, and photosynthetic efficiency. This treatment also optimized photochemical energy use, reduced excess excitation energy, and enhanced water-use efficiency. In contrast, naturally decomposed E. adenophorum compost exacerbated drought damage. Our findings demonstrate that the integration of microbially processed invasive plant biomass with nanomaterials offers a promising, sustainable approach to improve crop drought tolerance, while highlighting the importance of proper residue processing to avoid phytotoxicity.