Conclusions
Our study highlights that invasion by L.vulgare shifts the composition, relative abundance and diversity of soil microbial communities in the invaded plots across multiple sites along the altitudinal gradient. The results further suggest that the plant invasion-induced shifts in soil microbiome and nutrient pools may be a belowground self-reinforced invasion mechanism used by L.vulgarein new habitats along the altitudinal gradient to facilitate its successful invasion and possibly suppress native biodiversity. The triggering of such shifts may also represent hitherto least explored key belowground functional traits for species invasiveness by promoting positive feedbacks that support the microbial community dynamics. Therefore, our study helps understanding the shifting patterns of soil microbial communities and their drivers following plant invasion along an altitudinal gradient. Our study also provides crucial insights in elucidating the patterns and processes of plant invasion that operate underground in the soil system along altitudinal gradient in mountain landscapes in Kashmir Himalaya. These mountains are relatively understudied areas in comparison to areas in the global north, but our scientific findings and management implications are for mountainous landscapes elsewhere in the world.