Co-inoculation effect of Mesorhizobium ciceri and Pseudomonas fluorescens on physiological and biochemical responses of Kabuli chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) during drought stress

Abstract

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is an important legume plant which is being affected by drought stress. Due to drought, chickpea production has been low in Ethiopia and other chickpea producing countries. Hence, the aim of this study was to reduce the impact of drought on chickpea plant by taking advantage of consortium effect of Mesorhizobium ciceri CP41 and Pseudomonas fluorescens Biotype G. Two chickpea varieties, Habru (drought tolerant) and Arerti (drought susceptible) were used to study the effect of the two bacterial consortia in moderating the effects of drought stress on some morphological, physiological and biochemical traits. The results showed that co-inoculation had significantly improved fresh and dry weight of leaves, root and shoot (p < 0.05) under stress condition. However, non-significant difference was noted on nodules number per plant between co-inoculated and Mesorhizobium spp. alone inoculated. Relative water content, proline, total soluble sugar, total chlorophyll and carotenoid contents were significantly affected in both drought tolerant and susceptible varieties. The present study demonstrated that consortia application had a potential to confer drought tolerance in chickpea by altering various growth, physiological and biochemical parameters under drought stress condition.