A Review on the Role of Compost Microbes in the Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Plants

Abstract

Abiotic stresses have a tremendous effect on plant growth and development, which in turn affects harvest, quality of food, and global food safety. Under stressful environment, numerous factors like molecular, biochemical, and physiology of plants are being affected. The use of chemical pesticides and inorganic fertilizers causes environmental pollutions and degradation of soil fertility. During the stress period, the plant releases certain exudates that can act as a signaling mechanism to alter or create a healthy rhizosphere soil community. The application of compost is a sustainable approach that can help plants tolerate different stress conditions and enhance plant growth as compost encompasses diverse microbial consortia functioning at different temperature segments. This review, summarizes the compost microbiology, its diversity, and functional aspects under stress conditions. This investigates pioneering and current compost research, besides different abiotic stress inducers that can trigger plants to secret exudates to defend the plant life.