Integrated Application of Cattle Manure or Microbial Inoculants with Chemical Fertilizers Improves Nutrient Cycling in Albic Soils and Enhances Nutrient Use Efficiency and Yield in a Maize–Soybean Rotation System

Soil quality degradation and low nutrient use efficiency constrain sustainable maize-soybean rotation in the Albic soil region of Northeast China. A field experiment was conducted in 2023-2024 at Qixing Farm (Jiansanjiang, Heilongjiang, China) to evaluate chemical fertilizer combined with cattle manure or microbial inoculants. Five treatments were established: no fertilization (CK), chemical fertilizer alone (CF), chemical fertilizer combined with cattle manure (CF+CM), chemical fertilizer combined with a <i>Bacillus subtilis</i> inoculant (CF+CRA), and chemical fertilizer combined with a <i>Bacillus megaterium</i> inoculant (CF+CRB). Soil available nutrient dynamics, crop nutrient accumulation and translocation, fertilizer use efficiency, and yield were assessed. In maize, CF+CRB significantly enhanced pre-anthesis N translocation and post-anthesis P accumulation, increasing grain yield to 14,533 kg ha^-1 (+28.6% vs. CF). In soybean, CF+CRB produced 3328.15 kg ha^-1, 15.8% higher than CF. CF+CRA significantly increased soil available P during the soybean flowering-pod stage and improved K allocation at later stages. Overall, integrating chemical fertilizer with CRB improved yield and nutrient use efficiency. Based on crop-specific nutrient requirements, CRB is recommended for the maize season to strengthen nutrient translocation, whereas cattle manure or CRA can be applied in the soybean season to sustain K supply.