Evaluating the Efficacy of Plant Growth-Promoting Rhizobacteria (PGPRs) in Enhancing the Chickpea (Cicer Arietinum L.) Productivity Under Different Moisture Regimes

Azhar Mahmood Aulakh; Obaid  Ur Rehman; Adeel  Anwar; Riffat Bibi; Mohammad Yunas; Ayesha Malik; Safia Naureen Malik; Muhammad  Iftikhar; Tariq  Sultan; Sultan Ahmad Rizvi; Waqas Naseem; Khalid  Mehmood; Rizwan  Latif; Muhammad Waleej Arslan; Ghulam Muhammad; Qaiser Mahmood

Evaluating the Efficacy of Plant Growth-Promoting Rhizobacteria (PGPRs) in Enhancing the Chickpea (Cicer Arietinum L.) Productivity Under Different Moisture Regimes

Authors

Azhar Mahmood Aulakh Senior Scientist, Soil and Water Conservation Research Institute, Chakwal, Pakistan
Obaid Ur Rehman Chief Scientist, Soil and Water Conservation Research Institute, Chakwal, Pakistan
Adeel Anwar Assistant Professor, Department of Agronomy, PMAS Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi, Pakistan
Riffat Bibi Senior Scientist, Soil and Water Conservation Research Institute, Chakwal, Pakistan
Mohammad Yunas Senior Scientist, Soil and Water Conservation Research Institute, Chakwal, Pakistan
Ayesha Malik Chief Scientist, Soil and Water Conservation Research Institute, Chakwal, Pakistan
Safia Naureen Malik Principal Scientist, Soil and Water Conservation Research Institute, Chakwal, Pakistan
Muhammad Iftikhar Senior Scientific Officer, Land Resources Research Institute, NARC, Islamabad, Pakistan
Tariq Sultan Principal Scientific Officer, Land Resources Research Institute, NARC, Islamabad, Pakistan
Sultan Ahmad Rizvi Principal Scientist, Soil and Water Conservation Research Institute Chakwal, Pakistan
Waqas Naseem Scientific Officer, Soil and Water Conservation Research Institute Chakwal, Pakistan
Khalid Mehmood Associate Professor, Department of Agronomy, University of Pooch Rawalakot, Pakistan
Rizwan Latif Principal Scientist, Soil and Water Testing Laboratory, Chakwal, Pakistan
Muhammad Waleej Arslan Agriculture Officer, Extension Department, Hazro, Pakistan
Ghulam Muhammad Senior Scientist, Soil and Water Conservation Research Institute Chakwal, Pakistan
Qaiser Mahmood Water Management Officer, OFWM, Chakwal, Pakistan,

Keywords:

Plant Growth, Promoting Rhizobacteria, moisture regimes, drought, chickpea, Pothwar

Abstract

Prolonged and severe drought spell during growing season of field crops especially under rain fed conditions affects growth and productivity due to impact of ongoing climate change and is likely to enhance day by day directing to worldwide food insecurity. This experiment was planned to alleviate drought effects on chickpea through PGPRs to observe its productivity at different moisture regimes (50%, 70% and 90% of field capacity) in the pots keeping under glass house. Different bacterial strains were isolated from pink colored nodules, rhisospheric and rhizoplane soil of the plant roots of chickpea, those were collected from the field under stressful conditions. Six isolates were morphologically and biochemically characterized and identified through 16sRNA sequencing. Then, eight consortia were made from combination of identified six isolates and tested on chickpea plants. The consortia under treatment T3 showed best performance by giving 11.817 nodules plant-1 and grain yield 15.483 g pot-1 at moisture level 1 (50% of FC) followed by T5 which showed 22.837 nodules plant-1 and economic yield 20.607 g pot-1 at moisture level 2 (70% of FC). Similarly, consortia under treatment T2 gave 23.443 plant-1 and 20.283 g pot-1 regarding nodules and grain yield respectively at moisture level 3 (90 % FC). The experimental results indicate the key role of bacterial isolates consortium on chickpea productivity under drought stressful environment. The present study showed that the consortium T3 (Mesorhizobium ciceri SS1+Bacillus mojavensis PMCC-9 + Enterobacter cloacae PMCC-7) appears as resilient soil microbes under stressful conditions (50% of FC). Similarly, T5 (Mesorhizobium ciceri SS5+Bacillus mojavensis PMCC-9 + Enterobacter cloacae PMCC-7) and T2 (Mesorhizobium ciceri SS1+Bacillus mojavensis PMCC-9 + Bacillus subtilis PMCC-4) can be adopted in moderate moisture availability (70% of FC) and in irrigated areas (90% of FC) respectively, for maximum productivion of chickpea.

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Evaluating the Efficacy of Plant Growth-Promoting Rhizobacteria (PGPRs) in Enhancing the Chickpea (Cicer Arietinum L.) Productivity Under Different Moisture Regimes