Potential of Desmodesmus abundans as biofertilizer in common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.)

Abstract

Microalgae are source of macro- and micronutrients, phytohormones, lipids and carbohydrates, in addition to having an excellent adaptive capacity to the most diverse environments. Due to this, they have gained prominence in the biofertilizer industry. In this work, we evaluated the potential Desmodesmus abundans L2B Bold biofertilizer in bean cultivar “Pérola”. Microalgal biomass (107 cells mL−1) was applied to bean plants by manual irrigation starting at 15 days after sowing (DAS) and then every 10 days thereafter. The total number of pods and seeds, leaf fresh and dry mass, root dry mass, and total fresh and dry mass were positively influenced by microalgae biofertilizer. The leaf pigments were significantly (p < 0.05) increased with the use of D. abundans L2B Bold. This increase was of approximately 30% in chlorophyll a and b content with the application of biofertilizer 17 DAS and 7% in the middle of the crop cycle (37 DAS). The biofertilizer also significantly (p < 0.05) impacted foliar enzymatic activity with superoxide dismutase (SOD) being increased during all the crop cycle. Phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL) presented higher activity under microalgae use, being increased approximately 120%–1500% in biofertilized plants in the middle and at the end of the crop cycle, respectively. There were significant(p < 0.05) increases in K and Ca of seed beans contents with the application of biofertilizer. Based on our results, we conclude that D. abundans L2B Bold has great potential for use as a biofertilizer in bean crop.