Background:

Agriculture is a major contributor to environmental and soil degradation. Soil microorganisms are essential to improve plant growth, crop yields and stress-tolerance.

Objective:

To characterize maize early plant-response in a seedbed setting to native consortia of isolated microorganisms from arid zones.

Methods:

Sixteen fungal and 16 bacterial isolates from arid soils were identified by MALDI-TOF MS and confirmed using morphological characteristics. Ten biofertilizers were tested in replicates (n=100) in maize under seedbed conditions. Consortia were formulated based on growth promoting traits, including mainly Penicillium and Pseudomonas species. After 45 days, biofertilizers were evaluated according to plant height, and shoot and root fresh weight.

Results and Conclusions:

Penicillium and Pseudomonas were the predominant genera identified. Most strains are potential candidates for biofertilizer formulation based on their growth promoting traits. Bacterial consortia mainly promoted plant caulinar development, while the combination of fungal and bacterial species markedly increased root development. Eight biofertilizer consortia from arid zones had positive effects at early developmental stage of maize under seedbed conditions compared to uninoculated plants.