Vertically transmitted endophyte improved plant-rhizobacteria interaction
Posted 14th January 2020 by Joshua Sewell
Plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) have been identified as potential biofertilizers, eco-friendly, renewable and have been demonstrated to actively restore soil fertility. Beyond this, they have been shown to be a promising biological resource to augment chemical fertilizer, and drastically reduce its application and subsequent negative effects.
Improving crop production through understanding the soil microbiome
Posted 24th July 2019 by Jane Williams
Sarah Strauss is a soil microbial ecologist at the University of Florida. Her interests lie in understanding the interactions between soil microbes and crops, with the hope that improved understanding will benefit crop production.
We spoke to her about her work ahead of her presentation at the 4th Partnerships in Biocontrol, Biostimulants & Microbiome Congress: USA.
The interactions between soil microbes and plants are still very much uncharted territory, which makes it an exciting area of study. This is especially the case for the interactions between soil microbes and crops in agricultural systems. For example, we know that there are bacteria and fungi that can influence plant growth or soil nutrient availability, but most of those studies have been done with only a few plant species or under very specific growing conditions. Much of my research is looking at what interactions are occurring between specific crops in field conditions – and how those interactions might differ based on specific conditions or crops in a farmer’s field.