Yield increase of soybean inoculated with a commercial arbuscular mycorrhizal inoculant in Brazil

Abstract

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) play an important role in plant growth. However, there are no records of the use of AMF-based inoculants in agricultural crops in Brazil. The objective of this work was to evaluate the agronomic efficiency of a commercial inoculant containing the AMF Rhizophagus intraradices in combination with phosphate fertilization in soybean under different edaphoclimatic conditions in Brazil. Experiments were conducted in five states (Goias, Mato Grosso, Minas Gerais, Parana and Rio Grande do Sul) in a 2 x 3 factorial scheme, with two inoculation treatments (inoculated and non-inoculated seeds) and three doses of phosphate fertilization (0, 50 and 100% of the recommendation). At the end of the crop cycle (stages R2), it was found that the inoculant provided average increases of 29% in biomass (regardless of the applied P dose) and grain yield, and higher P uptake. It is concluded that the inoculant increases biomass production, P uptake and soybean yield under different edaphoclimatic conditions in Brazil, especially in soils that originally had low or medium levels of available P on the ground. Key words: Arbuscular mycorrhizae, soybean, phosphate fertilization, Rhizophagus intraradices.