Abstract: Aims Plant growth is influenced by a combination of their own characteristics and soil microbial communities. However, it remains unclear how plant resource acquisition strategies affect their own biomass through the diversity of rhizosphere soil fungi in natural communities. Methods In this study, we selected 12 dominant and common plant species from the meadow steppe of Saihanba in Hebei Province, and performed high-throughput sequencing on their rhizosphere soil fungi, and simultaneously measured the functional traits of these plants’ leaves and roots, as well as aboveground biomass. The aim was to delve into the relationship between rhizosphere soil fungal diversity and above-ground biomass under different resource acquisition strategies. Important findings The study found that: 1) in terms of resources acquisition strategies, leguminous plants belonged to the “fast-growing” strategy species, while Cyperaceae and Poaceae plants belonged to “slow-growing” strategy species. Cyperaceae plants exhibited a “do-it-yourself” strategy, and most non-leguminous forbs tended to be “outsourcing” strategy. 2) Plants with “slow-growing” and “do-it-yourself” strategies increased the overall rhizosphere fungal and saprotrophic fungal diversity, and the above-ground biomass of plants with these strategies dominated the community. 3) Rhizosphere soil fungal diversity was positively correlated with plant above-ground biomass, with the diversity of saprotrophic and pathogenic fungi playing particularly crucial roles. 4) The differences in above-ground biomass within the community were mainly directly influenced by the “fast-slow” economic spectrum of plants. These findings not only reveal the regulatory effect of plant resource acquisition strategies on rhizosphere soil fungal communities, but also highlight the key role of the “fast-slow” economic spectrum and rhizosphere soil fungal diversity in driving above-ground biomass accumulation. This study provides a theoretical basis for understanding the impact of plant-microbe interactions on the functions of grassland ecosystems.

Key words: “fast-slow” economic spectrum, collaborative dimension, above-ground biomass, rhizosphere fungi, meadow steppe