Bacillus subtilisFZB24® Affects Flower Quantity and Quality of Saffron (Crocus sativus)

Abstract

The effect of Bacillus subtilis FZB24® on saffron (Crocus sativus L.) was studied using saffron corms from Spain and the powdered form of B. subtilis FZB24®. Corms were soaked in water or in B. subtilis FZB24 spore solution for 15min before sowing. Some corms were further soil drenched with the spore solution 6, 10 or 14 weeks after sowing. Growth and saffron stigma chemical composition were measured. Compared to untreated controls, application of B. subtilis FZB24 significantly increased leaf length, flowers per corm, weight of the first flower stigma, total stigma biomass; microbe addition also significantly decreased the time required for corms to sprout and the number of shoot sprouts. Compared to the controls, picrocrocin, crocetin and safranal compounds were significantly increased when the plants were soil drenched with the spore solution 14 weeks after sowing; in contrast crocin was highest in untreated controls. Results of this study suggest that application of B. subtilis FZB24® may provide some benefit to saffron growers by speeding corm growth (earlier shoot emergence) and increasing stigma biomass yield by 12%. While some treatment conditions also increased saffron chemical composition, these were generally not the same treatments that simultaneously improved growth yields and thus, more study is required.

Diversity of culturable bacterial endophytes of saffron in Kashmir, India

“…B. subtilis has already been reported to possess saffron plant growth promotion potential. According to Eldin et al ( 2008 ) saffron corms treated with B. subtilis suspension result in speeding of corm growth, increased stigma biomass as well as increased carotenoid pigment production. Liu et al ( 2009 ) reported that the ginseng seedlings exhibit increased biocontrol, growth promotion and stress resistance properties when sown in soil inoculated with B. subtilis.…”

Molecular and chemical characterization of mutant and nonmutant genotypes of saffron grown in Saudi Arabia

“…Saffron (C. sativus L.) is one of the most valuable and expensive spices; it has high medicinal value and is used in the treatment of many diseases. The production of saffron is a very low worldwide because of its growth characteristics and high demand for labor (Sharaf-Eldin et al, 2008).…”

“…In the recent past, it has been produced by breeders, which provides a better platform for maintaining its genetic balance. The quality of saffron mainly depends upon stigma processing and species origin (Sharaf-Eldin et al, 2008). Caiola, Somma, and Lauretti (2000) reported that the phenological evaluation of C. sativus flowers obtained from corms from various regions of the world showed some variation in the color of the flowers as well as their fragrance and tepal lobes, but not in the pollen size (Caiola et al, 2000).…”

Rizobacterias Promotoras del Crecimiento Vegetal (PGPR) y sus efectos sobre la floración, ontogenia del grano y la granometría del cultivo de maní (Arachis hypogaea L.).

“…Las PGPR inducen el crecimiento y el rendimiento de los cultivos a través de una variedad de mecanismos de acción directos e indirectos (GOUDA et al, 2018) documentados en otros cultivos (e.g., azafrán, trigo, maíz, algodón, banana), allí se concluyó que Bacillus spp. incrementó la cantidad total de flores, número de frutos formados e incrementó el peso medio del fruto (ESITKEN et al, 2006;SHARAF-ELDIN et al, 2008;HUSSEINI;BOCHOW;JUNGE, 2012).…”