Coal mining has led to escalating ecological and environmental issues in significant coal and grain production areas, posing a severe danger to food security. This study examines the disturbance patterns of soil factors and microbial communities in coal and grain production areas, and attempts to understand the impact of subsidence and water accumulation stress on soil characteristics and microbial communities in coal mining subsidence areas with high subsidence levels. Five specific regions of Zhao Gu Yi Mine, situated in Henan Province and under the ownership of Jiaozuo Coal Group, were chosen. Aside from the control group (CK), the study blocks situated in the coal mining subsidence zones consisted of perennial subsidence ponding (PSP), seasonal subsidence ponding (SSP), the neutral zone (NZ), and the horizontal deformation zone (HDZ). The soil nutrient indices and the stoichiometric properties of soil C, N, and P were assessed on the surface of each block. The organization of the soil microbial community was identified using high-throughput sequencing. The findings indicate that: 1. Substantial disparities exist in soil properties and microbial community structure between the subsidence and non-subsidence zones. The levels of soil organic mater (SOM), total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), available nitrogen (AN), and available phosphorus (AP) all decrease to different extents in the subsidence area. Additionally, the coal mining subsidence waterlogged area exhibits higher levels compared to the coal mining subsidence non-waterlogged area. Conversely, the soil water content (SWC), C/N ratio, C/P ratio, and N/P ratio all increase to varying degrees. 2. Regarding the composition of the community, the presence of Proteobacteria is considerably greater in the non-water-logged area of coal mining subsidence (NZ, HDZ) compared to the water-logged area and control group (p < 0.05). The prevalence of Firmicutes in the subsidence water area was substantially greater compared to both the subsidence non-waterlogged area and the control group (p < 0.05). The prevalence of Gemmatimonadota is markedly greater in the waterlogged area of mining subsidence compared to the non-waterlogged area and CK (p < 0.05). The Ascomycota population reached its highest value in the neutral zone (NZ), which was significantly greater than the values observed in the seasonal subsidence ponding (SSP) and perennial subsidence ponding (PSP) regions (p < 0.05). On the other hand, the Rozellomycota population had its highest value in the SSP region, which was significantly greater than the values observed in the other regions (p < 0.05). 3. The abundance and variety of soil bacteria and fungi, as well as their important populations, are associated with different levels of soil characteristics. The primary elements that influence the alteration of microbial communities are soil nutrients and soil water content. The presence of coal mine subsidence and water accumulation has a notable impact on the properties of the soil in the surrounding area. This study offers a scientific foundation for reclaiming land affected by subsidence caused by coal mining in regions where coal and grain production are the dominant industries.

Underground coal mining in coal-grain overlapped areas leads to land subsidence and deformation above the goaf, damaging cultivated land. Understanding the influencing process of coal mining on cultivated land and crops is important for carrying out timely land reclamation and stabilizing crop yield. Research has been carried out by using crop growth parameters to evaluate the damaging degree of cultivated land when the mining subsidence is stable, but few studies focus on the influence of land damage on crop growth when the subsidence is unstable during coal mining. Therefore, this study tracked the three growth stages of winter wheat by using UAV multispectral imagery to explore the dynamic influence of underground mining on winter wheat aboveground biomass (AGB). Firstly, a winter-wheat-AGB estimation model (R² = 0.89, RMSE = 2.18 t/ha) was developed by using vegetation indexes (VIs), textures, and terrain data extracted from UAV imagery. Secondly, based on the winter-wheat-AGB estimation model, the winter wheat AGB was successfully estimated and mapped at different growth stages. The AGB of winter wheat in the coal mining-affected area was approximately 5.59 t/ha at the reviving stage, 8.2 t/ha at the jointing stage, and 15.6 t/ha at the flowering stage. Finally, combined with the progress of coal mining, the dynamic changing process of crops during underground mining can be inferred by analyzing the spatiotemporal variation in winter wheat AGB. Results showed that, in the dip direction, winter wheat AGB at the flowering stage was the highest at the compression zone, followed by the inner stretch zone, outer stretch zone, and neutral zone. The distance from the waterlogged area and the existence of cracks were found to be the important moderating variables affecting the crop growth status in the mining subsidence area. In the strike direction, there were significant differences in the wheat AGB-affected area as the mining proceeded. Even areas where AGB had previously significantly increased gradually transitioned to significant decreases with the end of mining. The research explores the dynamic changes in winter wheat AGB and land damage status during coal mining. It provides a rapid and non-destructive land-damage-monitoring method to protect cultivated land in mining areas.