Effects of inoculation with mycorrhizae and the benefits of bacteria on physicochemical and microbiological properties of soil, growth, productivity and quality of table grapes grown under Mediterranean climate conditions

Abstract

Excessive use of chemical fertilizers, in agriculture, has negative impacts on water, soil and affects the environment and health. In recent decades, researchers have been interested in the natural benefits of natural microorganisms and how they could be a good alterna- tive to the use of chemical fertilizers. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of soil inoculation with strains of mycorrhizae and beneficial bacteria on soil properties and productivity of table grapes. Field trials were conducted on a commercial table grape pro- duction farm (Vitis vinifiera cv. Mousca), located in northeastern Morocco. Twelve-year- old plants were used. Control plants were not inoculated (T1). The prototype plants were inoculated with 1.2 × 104 of Glomus iranicum var. tenuihypharum/100 g (T2), a mixture of 1/2 concentration of Glomus iranicum var. tenuihypharum and 1/2 concentration of Pseu- domonas putida (T3) and 1 × 108 CFU ∙ g–1 of Pseudomonas putida (T4). The inoculations were realized twice; the first inoculation was completed on July 19, 2019 while the second inoculation on February 21, 2020. Soil analyses were carried out, both physicochemical (pH, electrical conductivity (EC), salinity, % of dry matter) and microbiological proper- ties (total flora, fungi and actinobacteria). Plant growth (length of the plant, number and diameter of sticks, number of clusters per tree, number of nodes per stick, distance between nodes and bud burst), yield and fruit quality (number of berries per cluster, cluster weight, cluster length and width, pH, Brix degrees, acidity, EC and % dry matter) were measured. Results showed slight trends regarding the effects of treatments on the physicochemical and microbiological properties of the soil, plant growth and fruit quality. The number of clusters was significantly higher in Glomus (T2) Pseudomonas (T4) and Glomus than in control treatments.

Keywords

• glomus iranicum
• fertilizer
• nutrition
• pseudomonas putida
• symbiosis
• yield