Application of liquid microbial inoculants on legume seeds is a sustainable agricultural practice that can improve plant nutrient uptake and increase crop productivity. Inoculants should provide long-term survival of rhizobia in the final product and after application, to legume seeds. Ten different medium formulations of microbial inoculants were examined (yeast mannitol broth with the addition of agar, sodium-alginate, calcium chloride, glycerol or ferric chloride and combinations thereof) for the survival of the efficient nitrogen-fixing rhizobium, Sinorhizobium (Ensifer) meliloti L3Si strain. The most suitable liquid inoculant for survival of L3Si during a storage time of 150 days was the medium formulation containing glycerol in combination with agar or sodium-alginate. Alfalfa seeds were pre-inoculated with four formulations (yeast mannitol broth (YMB), YMB with agar (1 g L-1), YMB with 1 or 5 g L-1 sodium-alginate) for up to three months. Seeds pre-inoculated and stored for one month produced successful alfalfa plants. The nitrogen content in alfalfa obtained from pre-inoculated seeds one month before sowing was adequate and ranged from 3.72-4.19%. Using S. meliloti-based liquid inoculants for alfalfa and application of the pre-inoculation technique can increase the quality of alfalfa crops and reduce cultivation cost.
This study was conducted to test the hypothesis that plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) can promote the growth of Italian ryegrass, Lolium multiflorum Lam. as well as the growth and nodulation of subsequent alfalfa, Medicago sativa L. In a pot experiment, the influence of PGPR on yield and nitrogen content of Italian ryegrass and alfalfa was studied with the aim to improve their growth and provide effective alfalfa nitrogen fixation under unfavourable soil conditions. Plants were inoculated with seven strains belonging to Sinorhizobium meliloti, Azotobacter spp. and Enterobacter sp. A beneficial effect on yield and N-assimilation in Italian ryegrass was obtained due to the inoculation of the plants with Azotobacter vinelandii and some Sinorhizobium meliloti strains. In addition, Italian ryegrass seed inoculation with particular rhizobial strains the year before alfalfa growing provided abundant nodulation and better growth of alfalfa.
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