Abstract
The area of the soil influenced by plant roots is named rhizosphere. Among the microorganisms inhabiting the rhizosphere, several are plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR). Among PGPR species, some promote plant growth through direct effects on the plant, while other rhizosphere bacterial species benefit plant growth through reduction of damage caused by plant pathogens. This chapter deals with the aforementioned first class of PGPR. We focus mainly on bacteria belonging to the Azospirillum genus, as these bacteria have been deeply investigated in terms of plant growth promotion mechanisms. Moreover, inoculants (products that contain bacterial cells in a suitable carrier for agricultural use) with Azospirillum strains have been developed and are being used on a commercial scale. Other PGPR with potential to promote crop yields include species from the Herbaspirillum, Gluconacetobacter, Burkholderia, Pseudomonas, and Paenibacillus genera. Selected species from these genera, with plant growth promotion potential, are also described in this chapter, with emphasis on the properties of these bacteria that are associated with survival, fitness, and plant growth promotion mechanisms.
| Original language | American English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Beneficial Microorganisms in Multicellular Life Forms |
| Editors | Eugene Rosenberg, Uri Gophna |
| Place of Publication | Berlin, Germany |
| Publisher | Springer Verlag |
| Pages | 89-103 |
| Number of pages | 5 |
| ISBN (Electronic) | 978-3-642-21680-0 |
| ISBN (Print) | 978-3-642-21679-4, 978-3-642-43366-5 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 2011 |