Microbes Key to Saving Assam Tea From Climate Change

Guwahati: Scientists discovered billions of tiny soil microbes hold the secret to protecting Assam tea from climate change. A four-year study involving Nagaland University, the Tea Research Association, and ICAR tracked how temperature and rainfall shifts change the soil biological makeup. Research teams sampled five tea estates in Jorhat from 2016 to 2019. They mapped seasonal bacterial and fungal shifts along with enzyme levels.

Microbes dictate soil fertility. Their activity reveals early signs of environmental stress. The team used Principal Component Analysis and cluster analysis to link 80% of soil biological variation to three core weather factors. These findings allow growers to create site-specific management plans for their gardens.

Tanmoy Karak, co-author from Nagaland University, said, "This study establishes soil microbial communities and enzyme activities as sensitive indicators of environmental change and sustainable tea production." The study suggests that managing this hidden life under the bushes remains vital for future yields.

Nagaland University Vice-Chancellor Jagadish Kumar Patnaik noted the data helps build climate-resilient farming across Northeast India. The project involved a vast network of experts from Dibrugarh University, the University of California, San Francisco, the University of Kansas Medical Center, and the ICAR-Indian Agricultural Statistics Research Institute. These results appear in the journal Environments, providing a roadmap for growers facing erratic weather.