Rhizosheath Research at the Root–Soil–Microbiome Interface: A Bibliometric and Thematic Analysis of Stress Adaptation and Crop Resilience

Abstract

The rhizosheath is a dynamic plant–soil interface in which root traits, microbial activity, and soil physical properties jointly regulate plant adaptation to drought and nutrient limitation. Despite the growing interest in this field, it remains conceptually fragmented. This study mapped the development, structure, and emerging directions of rhizosheath research at the intersection of microbiome interactions, stress adaptation, and root-trait genetics. Bibliometric and science-mapping analyses were performed on 136 publications (2015–2026) retrieved from the Web of Science Core Collection. Using the Bibliometrix framework, we examined publication dynamics, collaboration networks, citation patterns, keyword co-occurrence, and thematic structures. The dataset comprised 136 publications, 6366 cited references, and 723 authors, with 54.41% international co-authorship. Logistic modeling described the accumulation of publications through 2025, identifying a growth inflection at 2022.54; a reliable saturation level could not be estimated because the 2026 data cover only a partial year. Document coupling resolved nine clusters dominated by soil–root interface processes (n = 51; 1358 citations) and plant–microbe interactions (n = 18; 895 citations). Thematic analysis positioned soil and rhizosheath as central domains and identified water stress as a key motor theme, whereas mucilage, hydraulic functioning, and microbiome assembly emerged as recent trends. Rhizosheath research is transitioning from descriptive characterization toward more integrated, mechanistic perspectives linking root traits, soil processes, and microbial dynamics. Progress will depend on resolving genotype × soil × microbiome interactions and advancing field-based cross-scale phenotyping to support climate-resilient cropping systems.