Halo-tolerant Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria Enhancing Mustard Seed Growth Under Salinity Stress for...

Salinity is one of the primary environmental factors that significantly impact global crop production. Plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) inoculation to crops improves the productivity of the crops.

To develop a biofertilizer specifically for saline soil, bacteria were isolated from the rhizosphere of mustard plants along with the plant growth-promoting traits grown in saline soil (EC 6 dS m). Halotolerant 22 bacterial strains were isolated and identified from the rhizospheric soil mustard crop, Purvanchal (Indian state). According to the study, 54.54% of the isolates had phosphate solubilization efficiencies ranging from 7% to 27% on plate assays. According to quantitative measurements, 63.63% of the strains exhibited the ability to solubilize phosphate, with degrees of solubilization varying between 0.49 and 3.34 μg/ml. Furthermore, 50% of the isolates showed the ability to solubilize zinc, with solubilization rates varying from 12% to 53%. Further 59.09% of the bacterial strains showed ammonium production test; these strains were classified as having low (+), medium (++), and high (+++) levels of ammonium production.

According to the research, these halo-tolerant plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) have particular functional properties that may help mustard crops grow more rapidly in salinity-stressed environments. Because these PGPR strains increase nutrient availability and stimulate plant development, they may find use in agriculture, especially in saline settings.

The study emphasizes how crucial it is to use PGPR with particular nutrient mobilization features to promote crop growth under difficult circumstances. The identification of these efficient strains may lead to the development of patent biofertilizers designed for saline soils, further supporting their application in modern agricultural practices.