Microbial phytoremediation of chromium-contaminated soil with biogas slurry for enhancing the performance of Vigna radiata L.
Muhammad Hussnain,
Muhammad Shabaan,
Faiza,
Qasim Ali,
Sana Ashraf,
Maqshoof Ahmad,
Umber Ghafoor,
Muhammad Javed Akhtar,
Usman Zulfiqar,
Sadam Hussain,
Ibrahim Al-Ashkar,
Mohamed S. Elshikh
Affiliations
Muhammad Hussnain
Institute of Soil & Environmental Sciences, University of Agriculture Faisalabad 38040 Pakistan
Muhammad Shabaan
Land Resources Research Institute (LLRI), National Agricultural Research Centre (NARC), Islamabad, Pakistan
Faiza
Institute of Soil & Environmental Sciences, University of Agriculture Faisalabad 38040 Pakistan
Qasim Ali
Department of Soil Science, Faculty of Agriculture and Environment, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Bahawalpur 63100 Pakistan; Corresponding authors.
Sana Ashraf
College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Quaid-e-Azam Campus, University of the Punjab, Lahore 54590 Pakistan
Maqshoof Ahmad
Institute of Soil & Environmental Sciences, University of Agriculture Faisalabad 38040 Pakistan
Umber Ghafoor
Pesticide Residue Laboratory, Kala Shah Kaku, Ferozewala, Sheikhupura 39350, Pakistan
Muhammad Javed Akhtar
Institute of Soil & Environmental Sciences, University of Agriculture Faisalabad 38040 Pakistan
Usman Zulfiqar
Department of Agronomy, Faculty of Agriculture and Environment, The Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Bahawalpur 63100, Pakistan; Corresponding authors.
Sadam Hussain
College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Xianyang 712100, China
Ibrahim Al-Ashkar
Department of Plant production, College of Food and Agriculture Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Mohamed S. Elshikh
Department of Botany and Microbiology, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia
Chromium (Cr) is a toxic heavy metal and severely reduces plant growth. It commonly exists in two forms, i.e., Cr+3 and Cr+6. Due to the high solubility and oxidizing potential, Cr+6 is more dangerous and can be converted into a less toxic form of Cr+3 by different physicochemical and biological techniques. Nitrogen-fixing rhizobia promote the growth of leguminous plants through various direct and indirect mechanisms, and their efficiency can be enhanced by integrating them with various organic amendments. Biogas slurry (BGS) improves the physical properties of soil and serves as an organic source of nutrients for plants and microbes. Rhizobia can convert the metal into a less toxic state, whereas BGS can bind it and make it unavailable for plants. Therefore, the current experiment evaluated the effect of rhizobia and BGS on the growth and yield of mung bean in Cr-contaminated soil. It was observed that individual and combined application of rhizobia and BGS ameliorated the Cr-induced adverse effects on crop growth and yield attributes. Combined application yielded more significant results than their sole application and control under Cr stress. Moreover, a significant decline in Cr uptake by the plant was observed due to the integrated application of rhizobia and BGS compared to the control. The collaborative effect of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) and BGS can be suitable for improving mung bean growth under Cr-contaminated sites.
