The use of Trichoderma, AMF, and Bc can support sustainable pistachio production by improving growth, physiological performance, and nutrient status.
Abstract
ABSTRACT The pistachio tree (Pistacia vera L.) is a globally valuable nut tree due to its economic and nutritional properties. Sustainable management strategies, including microbial biostimulants such as biochar (Bc), Trichoderma and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), have been proposed to enhance tree performance under variable environmental conditions. This study investigated the combined effects of Trichoderma harzianum Rifai KRL-AG2, two different Bc rates (1% and 3%) and the commercial AMF Endo Roots Soluble on the growth, physiological performance, leaf nutrient content and soil microbial activity of 3-year-old pistachio trees in Adıyaman, Türkiye. Two sampling periods were considered to capture the early (May) and late (September) growth stages. Morphological assessments included shoot length, stem diameter and branch number, while physiological assessments covered photosynthetic efficiency index (PEI), chlorophyll content and leaf colour. Soil pH, electrical conductivity and AMF spore density were also evaluated. At the beginning of the season, Trichoderma and 1% Bc significantly increased shoot length, stem thickening and branch formation compared to the control group, while AMF synergistically improved physiological performance towards the end of the season. Combined applications increased shoot length (39%) and branch count; in the most effective treatment, the branch count nearly doubled. The PEI increased by 60% in the early stages, and the leaf nutrient content (46.6%) and the colonisation of AMF in the soil were positively affected; thus demonstrating the synergistic effect of these biostimulants. The use of Trichoderma, AMF, and Bc can support sustainable pistachio production by improving growth, physiological performance, and nutrient status.
Corncob-derived biochar and plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) can improve soil fertility and plant performance, but their co-application in Coffea arabica L. nurseries remains poorly characterised. This study evaluated corncob-derived biochar combined with Bacillus megaterium S2-4a1 under well-watered greenhouse conditions. A completely randomised design with six replications was maintained for 180 days and included five treatments: control (T1), S2-4a1 alone (T2), and S2-4a1 combined with 1, 2, or 3% (w/w) biochar (T3-T5). Soil physicochemical properties, culturable microbial populations, soil microbial respiration (SMR), dissolved organic carbon (DOC), microbial biomass carbon (MBC), plant growth, nutrient status, and leaf physiological traits were assessed. T3 and T4 produced the highest soil pH, whereas cation exchange capacity increased with biochar rate and was highest in T5. T5 also had the highest organic matter, total carbon, exchangeable K, and culturable microbial population. T3 showed the highest SMR on day 1 and a secondary increase on day 18, together with the highest DOC and MBC. Plant height was not significantly affected, but T4 produced the greatest stem dry biomass and the highest relative water content, while co-application treatments generally lowered leaf H2O2 and membrane damage relative to the control. Under these non-stressed conditions, the results indicate that biochar rate altered the balance between soil microbial responses and coffee seedling performance. Rates of 2–3% with S2-4a1 were most consistently associated with improved soil chemical properties and seedling physiological status, supporting further evaluation in larger containers and field nurseries.
Sasiprapa Kullachonphuri, Thanabodee Sriwichaikaew, M. Demyan et al.· Scientific Reports· 0 citations
A field experiment was conducted during Kharif 2022 and 2023 at Dr. BRC Agricultural Research Station (ARS), Mandor, Rajasthan, to evaluate the effect of biofertilisers and growth-promoting microorganisms on growth, yield, and profitability of mungbean (Vigna radiata (L.) Wilczek, var. GM-4) under the mungbean–wheat cropping system. The experiment was laid out in a Randomised Block Design with ten treatments and three replications. Treatments consisted of different combinations of the recommended dose of fertilisers and seed inoculation, soil application, or combined seed and soil application of Rhizobium and phosphate-solubilising bacteria (PSB). The results indicated that growth parameters, yield attributes, grain yield, biological yield, and economic returns were significantly influenced by the treatments. The greatest numerical plant heights at 30 DAS (46.8 cm) and 45 DAS (55.9 cm) were recorded under T₁₀, while T₅ recorded comparable values of 45.8 and 55.3 cm, respectively. The highest numbers of pods per plant (39.6) and seeds per pod (13.5), dry matter production (3.50 t ha⁻¹), and test weight (48.1 g) were observed under T₅, whereas the highest numerical chlorophyll content (4.00 mg g⁻¹) was recorded under T₁₀. The highest grain yield (pooled: 1458 kg ha⁻¹) and net return (₹98,855 ha⁻¹) were recorded with 100% RDF (T₅), whereas 75% RDF combined with seed and soil application of Rhizobium + PSB (T₁₀) produced a pooled grain yield of 1400 kg ha⁻¹ and a B:C ratio of 4.41, remaining statistically at par with T₅. Thus, integrated use of biofertilisers with 75% RDF can reduce fertiliser requirement without significant yield loss and improve profitability.
A. Verma, M. Mehriya, Ashish Vishnawat· International Journal of Pla...· 0 citations
Continuous cropping obstacles (CCOs), driven by microbial dysbiosis, hinder sustainable
Chrysanthemum morifolium
production. While rotation and organic amendments are known to alleviate CCOs, their impact on microbial interactomes remains unclear. This study evaluated 10 agronomic treatments during a full cultivation cycle, ranging from monoculture (CK) to integrated rotation systems combined with bio-organic fertilizer or vermicompost (Rot_Org and Rot_Org_Ver), in a field with five-year continuous cropping history of
Chrysanthemum morifolium
. We integrated soil physicochemical analysis, enzyme profiling, and high-throughput sequencing (16S/ITS) with phytochemical assessments. Results showed integrated management improved soil nutrients and enzyme activities (e.g., sucrase, protease), reduced bacterial
α
-diversity, but enriched beneficial fungal taxa (Ascomycota, Mortierellomycota), which responded more strongly to AN/AP shifts than bacteria. Pathogen abundance declined under vermicompost-amended rotation (Rot_Org_Ver). XGBoost modeling with SHAP interpretation identified fungal positive cohesion as the paramount biological predictor of yield, which also correlated with flavonoid and phenolic acid accumulation. We conclude that assembling a stable, cohesive fungal interactome-rather than increasing species richness-is the primary mechanism coupling soil health restoration with crop productivity, providing a theoretical framework for ecological intensification in medicinal plant cultivation.
Gui-Mei Tang, Guo-Lin Huang, Yu-Xia Zhou et al.· Frontiers in Microbiology· 0 citations
Climate change and increasing demand for local protein resources offer a significant reason to introduce soybean (Glycine max (L.)) in Lithuania, which is beyond soybean’s typical distribution area in Europe. This study was carried out to examine the effect of microbial biostimulant inoculation in combination with chemical micronutrients on soybean under the edaphic condition of Lithuania. A three-year field trial (2023–2025) tested five treatments, including uninoculated control, Arthrobacter pascens (AP), Bradyrhizobium japonicum (BJ), BJ + AP, and BJ + AP combined with micronutrients (BJ + AP + MN) on soybean biomass, nodulation, growth, quality, yield, and yield components. BJ alone promoted most of the crop traits because the northern soil lacks biological nitrogen fixation rhizobia. It established nodulation, increased SPAD value, shoot biomass (81%), plant height (19.16%), root biomass (40.1%), protein (6.9%), pods per plant, and grain yield (33.2%) over the uninoculated control. Moreover, AP also elevated biomass and yield components significantly without nodule formation. The effects of combined biostimulant treatments in many cases were not significantly different from the single treatment of BJ. All the treatments exhibited stable performance in growing seasons, although with year-to-year climatic variation. The year 2025 gave the highest biomass and yield because of the good precipitation and temperature over that year. The most positive response of soybean grain yield was observed with inoculation of BJ + AP, which increased grain yield by 35.65% over the untreated control. This study highlights the potential of the novel epiphyte Arthrobacter pascens 13LEP5 as a highly efficient, nodule-independent biofertilizer that can match or exceed the performance of traditional inoculants in soybean production. This study suggests identifying rhizobial inoculation as a strong climate-smart strategy for the launch of a productive, low-input, organic soybean system as an expansion poleward cultivation under the edaphic condition of Lithuania.
Y. Jamil, Sulaiman Khan, Raminta Skipitytė et al.· Agriculture· 0 citations
The results demonstrate that the combined application of S. wightii extract and PGPR can effectively enhance tomato productivity while reducing fertiliser usage by 25 %, and offers a sustainable approach to improving crop performance and reducing chemical fertiliser dependence.
K. Oviya, J. Jaipriyanka, S. Mahalakshmi et al.· Plant Science Today· 0 citations
It is demonstrated that combined PGPR and AMF inoculation represents an effective and sustainable strategy to enhance soil biological functioning, nutrient cycling, and drought tolerance of O. ficus-indica in water limited environments.
Ilham Zouitane, Mohamed Ferioun, Sana Mounaimi et al.· 3 Biotech· 0 citations
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