Abstract
Increasing temperature leads to intensive water evaporation, contributing to global warming and consequently leading to drought stress. These events are likely to trigger modifications in plant physiology and microbial functioning due to the altered availability of nutrients. Plants exposed to drought have developed different strategies to cope with stress by morphological, physiological, anatomical, and biochemical responses. First, visible changes influence plant biomass and consequently limit the yield of crops. The presented review was undertaken to discuss the impact of climate change with respect to drought stress and its impact on the performance of plants inoculated with plant growth-promoting microorganisms (PGPM). The main challenge for optimal performance of horticultural plants is the application of selected, beneficial microorganisms which actively support plants during drought stress. The most frequently described biochemical mechanisms for plant protection against drought by microorganisms are the production of phytohormones, antioxidants and xeroprotectants, and the induction of plant resistance. Rhizospheric or plant surface-colonizing (rhizoplane) and interior (endophytic) bacteria and fungi appear to be a suitable alternative for drought-stress management. Application of various biopreparations containing PGPM seems to provide hope for a relatively cheap, easy to apply and efficient way of alleviating drought stress in plants, with implications in productivity and food condition.
Highlights
The horticulture system is affected by various abiotic and biotic stresses which directly and indirectly influence soil fertility, plant health and crop yield [1,2,3]
The huge variety of changes taking place in horticultural plants and the mechanisms of counteracting stress they produce result from a very wide range of horticultural plant species, including types of crops such as those distinguished by the International Society for Horticultural Science (ISHS): (1) tree, bush and perennial fruits, (2) perennial bush and tree nuts, (3) vegetables, (4) medicinal and aromatic plants, (5) ornamental plants, (6) trees, shrubs, turf and ornamental grasses propagated and produced in nurseries for use in landscaping or for establishing fruit orchards or other crop production units [5]
The key problems of using biopreparations containing various microorganisms include limiting the possibility of introducing the microbial inoculum to the appropriate conditions and the low repeatability of their activities
Summary
The horticulture system is affected by various abiotic and biotic stresses which directly and indirectly influence soil fertility, plant health and crop yield [1,2,3]. Horticulturae 2021, 7, 390 plants is strongly affected by abiotic stresses, which intensify the influence of biotic factors such as pests causing serious plant infections [4] In this dramatic situation, plant associations with rhizospheric [6,7] and endophytic [8,9] microorganisms colonizing the rhizoplane, rhizosphere and plant tissues should be considered as the main stress relievers [10,11,12,13,14]. Plant–microbe interactions should be considered the main factor of plant growth, protection against abiotic stresses and resistance against adverse conditions [24,25] (e.g., in arid and semiarid areas), and these interactions could be beneficial in alleviating drought stress in plants [26]. The presented review was undertaken to discuss the impact of climate change with respect to drought stress, and to emphasize that modifications in microorganisms composition and their traits should indicate new solutions in the search for efficient compounds of biopreparations supporting plant growth
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