Environmental Microbiology and Microbial Ecology Commons^™

Inoculating Rhizobium And Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi On Snap Bean Under Salinity Stress To Study Plant Growth And Glomalin Production Effects, Claudia Lyl Garcia

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Groundwater salinization from saltwater intrusion threatens Southeastern Florida’s commercially important snap bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) production because of the crop’s low salt-tolerance threshold. The present study was carried out to determine if co-inoculating salt-stressed snap beans with beneficial microbial symbionts (i.e., Rhizobium and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi) can mitigate growth reductions. Additionally, the study also assessed whether co-inoculation had an effect on the production of glomalin, a protein secreted by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi that improves soil aggregation. Snap beans were inoculated (-AMF/-Rhizobium, +AMF/-Rhizobium, +AMF/+Rhizobium) and irrigated with varying salinity levels (0.6, 1.0, 2.0 dS …