Rhizospheric Microbes for Sustainable Agriculture: An Overview

Abstract

Agriculture is a complex network interaction among soil-plant-microbes. There is an urgent need for an ecologically compatible, environment-friendly technique in agriculture system that might be able to provide adequate supply of essential nutrients for the alarming growing rate of human populations through qualitative and quantitative improvement of agricultural products. Conventional agriculture plays a crucial role to fulfill the increasing food demands of a growing human population, which has also led to enhancing the use of pesticides and chemical fertilizers. Improvement in agricultural sustainability requires optimal use and management of soil fertility which rely on soil microbiological processes and soil biodiversity. An understanding of microbial diversity perspectives in agriculture is important and useful to arrive at measures that can act as indicators of soil quality, soil health, and plant productivity. In this context, microorganisms present in soils have multiple plant growth-promoting (PGP) activities such as IAA (indole-3-acetic acid), hydrogen cyanide (HCN) and siderophore production, ACC deaminase activity, and nitrogen fixation and nutrient solubilization (P, K, and Zn). Efficient plant growth-promoting microorganisms (PGPMs) solubilize the nutrients in soil and facilitate absorption by plants and consequently enhance the plant growth and yield. PGPMs also sustain the soil fertility, soil health, and nutrient mobilization efficiency under sustainable agriculture.