Phosphate-Solubilizing Bacteria with Low-Solubility Fertilizer Improve Soil P Availability and Yield of Kikuyu Grass

• Published in: Microorganisms (Basel) Vol. 11; no. 7; p. 1748
• Main Authors: Torres-Cuesta, Daniel, Mora-Motta, Duber, Chavarro-Bermeo, Juan P, Olaya-Montes, Andres, Vargas-Garcia, Cesar, Bonilla, Ruth, Estrada-Bonilla, German
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 04.07.2023; MDPI
• Subjects: Abiotic stress; Acidic soils; Availability; Bacteria; Cattle feeds; Comparative analysis; compost; diammonium phosphate; Dietary minerals; Environmental aspects; Experiments; Farming systems; Fertilization; Fertilizers; Grasses; Growth; Inoculation; microbial inoculants; Microorganisms; Pasture; Pennisetum; PGPR; Phosphate; phosphate sequential fractionation; Phosphates; Phosphorus content; Physiological aspects; Productivity; Red clover; Rock phosphate; Rocks; Soil dynamics; Soil improvement; Soils; Solubility; Colombia; rock phosphate; microbial inoculants; compost; diammonium phosphate; enzymatic activity; PGPR; phosphate sequential fractionation
• ISSN: 2076-2607; 2076-2607
• DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms11071748

Inoculation with phosphate-solubilizing bacteria (PSB) and the application of phosphorus (P) sources can improve soil P availability, enhancing the sustainability and efficiency of agricultural systems. The implementation of this technology in perennial grasses, such as Kikuyu grass, for cattle feed in soils with high P retention, such as Andisols, has been little explored. The objective of this study was to evaluate the productive response of Kikuyu grass and soil P dynamics to BSF inoculation with different P sources. The experiment was conducted on a Kikuyu pasture, which was evaluated for 18 months (September 2020 to March 2022). Three P fertilizers with different solubility levels were applied: diammonium phosphate (DAP) (high-solubility), rock phosphate (RP), and compost (OM) (low-solubility). Moreover, the inoculation of a PSB consortium ( D7, T88 and sp. AP21) was tested. Inoculation with PSB and fertilization with rock phosphate (RP) increased soil labile P and acid phosphomonoesterase activity. Increased grass yield and quality were related with higher soil inorganic P (Pi) availability. This study validated, under field conditions, the benefits of PSB inoculation for soil P availability and Kikuyu grass productivity.