SWATI SINDHU*, RUCHI SHARMA, JENIFFER CHRISTEENA MASIH AND SUNITA SUNEJA
Department of Microbiology, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar-125 004 (Haryana), India
*(e-mail : swati3357@gmail.com)
(Received : September 15, 2017; Accepted : November 18, 2017)
ABSTRACT
The role of bacteria in improvement of soil fertility to increase the agricultural production having gist of author’s findings has been reviewed. Maintenance of soil functions is critically dependent on presence of microorganisms in agricultural soils because of their involvement in many key processes as soil structure formation, organic matter decomposition, toxin removal and the recycling of carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and other micronutrients like zinc. Zinc (Zn) plays an important role in physiological and biochemical functions of the plants as their productivity is dependent on its availability in the soil. Although agricultural soil is normally zinc deficient and this deficiency not only affects crop yield, but also nutritional quality and human health. Zinc deficiency due to low Zn solubility in soils has been reported to be the most widespread micro-nutritional disorder of the food crops in India as well as the world over. Application of zinc in the form of chemical fertilizer is not appropriate due to its conversion into unavailable fraction of zinc. Hence, isolation of zinc solubilizing rhizospheric microorganisms having the capacity to convert various unavailable forms of the zinc to available forms offers the best available solution to combat Zn deficiency. Microbial transformation of unavailable forms of soil zinc to plant available zinc is an important approach contributing to plant zinc nutrition and growth promotion.
Key words : Zinc solubilizing bacteria, biofertilizer, field crops