Effect of the introduction of the nitrogen-fixing bacteria Pseudomonas putida 23 on the nitrogen balance in soil

Abstract

The inoculation of red beets with the nitrogen-fixing bacteria Pseudomonas putida 23 increased the activity of the nitrogen fixation in the rhizosphere of the plants grown on meadow soil in the central part of the Oka River floodplain. The yield of the red beets and the uptake by plants of nitrogen from the soil and from the 15N-labeled nitrogen fertilizer applied on the trial microplot increased significantly. A statistically significant additional fixation of nitrogen from the atmosphere and a positive balance of nitrogen in the soil-plant system without significant changes in the bulk content of the soil nitrogen after the plant growing were found in a greenhouse experiment with the application of P. putida. It can be supposed that the excessive nitrogen determined in this system is related to the incorporation into plants of atmospheric nitrogen fixed in the rhizosphere of the inoculated plants. The application of P. putida 23 makes it possible to decrease the rates of NPK fertilizer by two times without losses in the yield of red beets.