Abstract
Plant growth and arbuscular mycorrhizal colonization were studied in sugarcane, corn and soybean by applying five plant growth promoting fungi: Beauveria bassiana, Metarhizium anisopliae, Pochonia chlamydosporia, Purpureocillium lilacinum, and Trichoderma asperella. Sugarcane, corn and soybean were grown in pots under two treatments: (1) inoculation with the fungal consortium and (2) control without inoculation. In the inoculated treatment, fungal spore suspension were applied to the seeds and shoots were sprayed every 28 days. Means were analyzed by analysis of variance and Tukey's test at 5% probability level. The experiment was arranged in a completely randomized design, with six replications. Fungi consortium mediate root growth in soybean and corn, and arbuscular mycorrhizal colonization in soybean and sugarcane. These findings are probably caused by the fungi producing phytohormones and inducing the plants to synthesize phytohormones: auxins for root growth; and jasmonic, abscisic, and salicylic acids with a role in the regulation of mycorrhizal colonization. These effects are important when seeking conservation strategies in agriculture and livestock production, since Fungi consortium can better mediate soil resource acquisition, promoting greater absorption of nutrients and water.
Highlights
One of the great challenges facing society today is to plan and propose sustainable solutions to food production for an estimated population of 9 billion by 2050, according to the United Nations - UN projection (Searchinger et al 2014)
Nematodes, and microorganisms, some fungi colonize plant tissues and may bring other benefits to the plant: they have been named as plant growth promoting fungi (PGPF) (Barelli et al 2016, Ownley et al 2010, Sasan and Bidochka 2012, Vega 2008)
This study aimed to evaluate the effect of the combined application of the five fungal isolates, i.e., Beauveria bassiana, Metarhizium anisopliae, Pochonia chlamydosporia, Purpureocillium lilacinum, and Trichoderma asperella, on the growth, plant nutrition, and arbuscular mycorrhizal colonization in sugarcane, corn, and soybean
Summary
One of the great challenges facing society today is to plan and propose sustainable solutions to food production for an estimated population of 9 billion by 2050, according to the United Nations - UN projection (Searchinger et al 2014). In order to establish a sustainable agriculture, which will reduce the impacts caused to the environment, the use of microorganisms that promote plant growth has become an option (Berg 2009, Martínez-Medina et al 2014). In addition to the environmental impact, there is the economic issue: billions of dollars are lost annually due to the action of parasitic nematodes, pests, and fungi in various crops (Abad et al 2008, Wesemael et al 2010). Mechanisms of plant growth promotion may be specific to each isolate fungalplant interaction, but may involve pest and disease control, phytohormone production, complexation and unavailability of toxic chemical species, interaction with beneficial microorganisms, and nutrient solubilization (Jung et al 2012, Liao et al 2014a, Oggerin et al 2013)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
