Influence of bio-fertilizers on the biomass yield and nutrient content in Stevia rebaudiana Bert. grown in Indian subtropics

Abstract

A pot culture experiment was conducted at Indian Institute of Horticultural Research, Hessaraghata, Bangalore, India to study the effect of bio-fertilizers on the biomass yield and NPK content in Stevia (Stevia rebaudiana). The results show the yield and NPK content in stevia plant has been found to be increased initially and thereafter, the amount of the same decreased with the progress of plant growth up to 60 days with the combined treatment of bio-fertilizers rather than individual treatment. This is due to their ability to fix atmospheric nitrogen (symbiotic and asymbiotic) and transform native soil nutrients likely phosphorus, zinc, copper, iron, sulfur from the non-usable (fixed) to usable form and decompose organic wastes through biological processes which in turn releases nutrients in a form which can be easily assimilated by plants resulting in an increase in biomass production of stevia plant. Key words: Azospirillum (AZO), bio-fertilizer, phosphorus solubilising bacteria (PSB), Stevia rebaudiana, vesicular arbuscular mycorrhiza (VAM).