Abstract
The 20thcentury witnessed an augmentation in agricultural production, mainly through the progress and use of pesticides, fertilizers containing nitrogen and phosphorus, and developments in plant breeding and genetic skills. In the naturally existing ecology, rhizospheric soils have innumerable biological living beings to favor the plant development, nutrient assimilation, stress tolerance, disease deterrence, carbon seizing and others. These organisms include mycorrhizal fungi, bacteria, actinomycetes, etc. which solubilize nutrients and assist the plants in up taking by roots. Amongst them, arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi have key importance in natural ecosystem, but high rate of chemical fertilizer in agricultural fields is diminishing its importance. The majority of the terrestrial plants form association with Vesicular Arbuscular Mycorrhiza (VAM) or Arbuscular Mycorrhizal fungi (AMF). This symbiosis confers benefits directly to the host plant’s growth and development through the acquisition of Phosphorus (P) and other mineral nutrients from the soil by the AMF. They may also enhance the protection of plants against pathogens and increases the plant diversity. This is achieved by the growth of AMF mycelium within the host root (intra radical) and out into the soil (extra radical) beyond. Proper management of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal fungi has the potential to improve the profitability and sustainability of agricultural systems. AM fungi are especially important for sustainable farming systems because AM fungi are efficient when nutrient availability is low and when nutrients are bound to organic matter and soil particles.
Highlights
The productivity of agriculture has increased steadily since the middle of the last century in temperate regions and, more recently, in tropical areas [1] mainly due to improved varieties, machinery, fertilizers, and pesticides
With increasing concern and demand on the requirement to augment sustainability in agricultural development, mycorrhizae fungi possess a significant part to perform in decreasing the detrimental consequent of chemical inputs of agriculture viz. pesticides, synthetic nutrients for promoting plant growth and regulating numerous pathogens
It is an economic and non-detrimental way of acquiring higher yield which may leads to development of a feasible, minimuminput cropping system
Summary
The productivity of agriculture has increased steadily since the middle of the last century in temperate regions and, more recently, in tropical areas [1] mainly due to improved varieties, machinery, fertilizers, and pesticides. The recent increase in crop yields and food production in developed countries have been achieved by intensive agricultural practices. This increase, have not come without tremendous environmental costs. To overcome the ecological problems resulting from the loss of plant nutrients and to increase crop yields in the absence of resources for obtaining costly fertilizers, microscopic organisms that allow more efficient nutrient use or increase nutrient availability can provide sustainable solutions for present and future agricultural practices. The importance of the mycorrhizal arbuscular fungi in organic farming and farmers’ potential to increase the benefits of arbuscular mycorrhizae (AM) associations in such systems represented interesting subjects as it was synthesized by Gosling et al [15] Symbiotic soil organisms, such as mycorrhizal fungi, may be the source of many of these beneficial effects and thereby be key components of agricultural ‘sustainable intensification’ [5]
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