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Azospirillum brasilense increases corn growth and yield in conventional low input cropping systems

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 August 2020

Steliane Pereira Coelho*
Affiliation:
Plant Science Department, Federal University of Viçosa, Brazil
João Carlos Cardoso Galvão
Affiliation:
Plant Science Department, Federal University of Viçosa, Brazil
Jeferson Giehl
Affiliation:
Plant Science Department, Federal University of Viçosa, Brazil
Édio Vicente de Jesus
Affiliation:
Federal Institute of Minas Gerais, São João Evangelista Campus, Brazil
Beatriz Ferreira Mendonça
Affiliation:
Plant Science Department, Federal University of Viçosa, Brazil
Silvane de Almeida Campos
Affiliation:
Plant Science Department, Federal University of Viçosa, Brazil
Lamara Freitas Brito
Affiliation:
Plant Science Department, Federal University of Viçosa, Brazil
Tamara Rocha dos Santos
Affiliation:
Department of Soil Science, Federal University of Goiás, Brazil
Emuriela da Rocha Dourado
Affiliation:
Department of Microbiology, Federal University of Viçosa, Brazil
Maria Catarina Megumi Kasuya
Affiliation:
Institute for Biotechnology Applied to Agriculture, Laboratory of Mycorrhizal Associations, Federal University of Viçosa, Brazil
Marliane de Cássia Soares Silva
Affiliation:
Institute for Biotechnology Applied to Agriculture, Laboratory of Mycorrhizal Associations, Federal University of Viçosa, Brazil
Paulo Roberto Cecon
Affiliation:
Department of Statistics, Federal University of Viçosa, Brazil
*
Author for correspondence: Steliane Pereira Coelho, E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract

The supplementation of nitrogen can be increased by the use of nitrogen-fixing, diazotrophic bacteria such as Azospirillum brasilense. These bacteria can act to promote plant growth in various plant species, including corn (Zea mays L.). However, there is a need to understand the behavior of these bacteria in different agricultural systems. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect on the growth and yield of corn inoculated with A. brasilense, and to identify the type of farming system which benefited most from the use of A. brasilense-based inoculants. The experiment conducted over two corn crop seasons was arranged in a 6 × 2 factorial scheme, consisting of six farming systems and the presence or absence of inoculation with the bacteria A. brasilense. The farming systems were derived from a long-term experiment with different fertilization systems that has been conducted since 1984. Among these systems, there were three conventional systems (CNT1: conventional no-till without fertilizer; CNT2: conventional no-till with 150 kg ha−1 of mineral fertilizer + 50 kg ha−1 of urea; CNT3: conventional no-till with 300 kg ha−1 of mineral fertilizer + 100 kg ha−1 of urea), and three organic systems (ONT1: organic no-till with 40 m3 ha−1 of organic compost; ONT2: organic no-till with 20 m3 ha−1 of organic compost; ONT3: organic no-till with 40 m3 ha−1 of organic compost and intercropped with Canavalia ensiformis). Although the Azospirillum population in the soil before planting was the same for all six systems, the count in the rhizospheric soil was higher in the organic systems, and there was no increase in that count due to inoculation. In this study, the only difference observed was within the CNT1 system, between the inoculated (CNT1-I) and uninoculated (CNT1-NI) treatments. In this system, inoculation resulted in an increase in plant height, in addition to higher concentrations of foliar N and P, and a higher plant survival rate, which culminated in higher yield. Corn inoculated with A. brasilense in the CNT1-I treatment showed a significant increase in yield—2839 kg ha−1 higher than that recorded for CNT1-NI. This study shows that, in the conventional low input treatment CNT1-I, inoculation with A. brasilense resulted in an increase in corn growth and yield.

Type
Research Paper
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2020. Published by Cambridge University Press

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