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Abstract

Organic farming is increasingly promoted as a sustainable alternative to conventional agriculture due to its positive effects on soil microbial dynamics, a critical component of ecosystem functioning. However, empirical comparisons of microbial responses across these systems are scarce. Therefore, we conducted a study to assess the various microbial indices of soils taken from distinct crop fields (e.g., brinjal, chilli, tomato, bean, and fallow lands) managed under both conventional and organic farming techniques. Composite soil samples from surface layer (0–15 cm) were collected in a completely random way from Bandarban upazila of Bangladesh (22°11'24.0"N 92°09'00.0"E, organic fields; 22°10'12.0"N 92°09'36.0"E, conventional fields). After 10-days of pre-incubation at 60% of water holding capacity (WHC), microbial biomass carbon (MBC) and microbial biomass nitrogen (MBN) of soils were assessed by chloroform fumigation-extraction method, and key microbial efficiency indicators (e.g., metabolic quotient, qCO2; microbial quotient, qMic and mineralization quotient, qM) were analyzed. Microbial activity (MA) was measured over 60 days. The results indicated that organic farming generally supports higher MBC and MBN levels, as observed in organic chilli (585.22 mg kg-1 MBC, 92.36 mg kg-1 MBN) and organic tomato (382.07 mg kg-1 MBC, 160.84 mg kg-1 MBN). In contrast, conventional farming exhibited significantly higher MA and qCO2 values. Conventional chilli and bean fields showed particularly high qCO2 (0.26 mg CO2-C/mg Cmic h-1×10-4 and 0.08 mg CO2-C/mg Cmic h-1×10-4) and mineralization quotient values (0.80% and 0.75%, respectively). A significant (p2. Our results suggest that soil microbial abundance in conventional farming are under stress, showing low efficiency with accelerated nutrient turnover. Notably, exceptions such as higher MBC and MBN in conventional tomato and brinjal fields reflected crop-specific responses. The present study demonstrates the need for future research on microbial community structure across diverse agroecosystems.

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