Effects of Chickpea Inoculation with Rhizobium (Mesorhizobium caesar) and Mycorrhizae (Glomus mosseae) on Soil Structural Stability and Aggregates Size Distribution under both Greenhouse and Field Conditions

آب و خاک

Article 9, Volume 33, Issue 6 - Serial Number 68, January 2020, Pages 897-911   

Document Type: Research Article

DOI: 10.22067/jsw.v33i6.79810

Authors

Ladan Heydari; Javad Hamzei; Tahmeineh Ghytasi Ranjbar; Somayeh Bahramian Ragheb; Fatemeh Madineh Khorrami

Bu Ali Sina University

Abstract

Introduction: Stability of soil aggregates is a result of complex physical, chemical and biological processes in the soil. In many studies, organic matter has been studied as a major factor in formation of aggregates and the effects of symbiosis between mycorrhizal fungi and bacteria largely ignored, however these microorganisms have a great effect in the formation of the aggregates. Plant roots provide a suitable habitat for the activity of many soil microorganisms. In this regard, the symbiosis of plant roots with fungi is one of the most common and long-lived symbiotic relationships that are found in most ecosystems. On the other hand, biological fertilizers can improve soil aggregation through influence the growth of root and plant. Despite the significant effect of fungi and bacteria on the stability of the soil structure, the effect of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi species Glomus mosseae and Rhizobium species Mesorhizobiumon caesar on the soil structure has been rarely investigated. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of chickpea inoculation with Rhizobium (Mesorhizobium caesar) and mycorrhizae (Glomus mosseae) on soil structural stability and aggregates size distribution under both greenhouse and field conditions.
Materials and Methods: The present study was conducted as a randomized complete-block design with three replications in both greenhouse and field conditions. The treatments under field condition were mycorrhizal fungus (Glomus mosseae), Rhizobium (Mesorhizobium caesar), mycorrhizae – rhizobium combined treatment and a control (no inoculation). In the greenhouse condition, sterilized mycorrhiza background material and without plant (without inoculation) treatments were also added. Chickpea was planted at both conditions. Soil sampling was carried out after harvesting. The stability of aggregates using wet sieving method and soil organic carbon content were investigated.
Results and Discussion: Greenhouse study results showed that mycorrhizae treatment significantly increased the mean weight diameter of the aggregates by 51.6% and 189.1%, in comparison with the control (without inoculation) and control- without plant (without inoculation), respectively. This treatment increased macro aggregates and decreased the fine aggregates. In the greenhouse condition, soil organic carbon content had a high correlation with the mean weight diameter of the aggregates (R2 = 0.53) and mycorrhizal treatment increased organic carbon content from 0.73% in the control (without plant) to 1.02%. However, the mycorrhizae – rhizobium combined treatment had less effect on the stability of the aggregates than their single effects. The mass of aggregates of 1–2 mm are more sensitive to short-term management. In the greenhouse condition all the three biofertilizer treatments significantly increased the mass of the aggregates of 1-2 mm in comparison with the control treatment without plant (without inoculation). On the other hand, the mean comparison results showed that there was no significant difference between the sterilized mycorrhizal background and the control without plant (without inoculation). This may be due to the lower organic matter content in these two treatments compared to others. In the greenhouse condition, increasing the mass of coarse aggregates of 4-8 mm in diameter indicates the suitability of soil structure. On the other hand, aggregates coarser than 0.25 mm are considered as coarse and stable aggregates. It can be concluded that the application of mycorrhiza and rhizobium increased soil structural stability through the increase of the mass of these classes of the aggregates (2-4 and 4-8 mm), probably by affecting the length and volume of the root and plant yield. Under the field condition, the treatments had no impact on the mass of the aggregates in different size classes.
Conclusion: Bacteria and fungi can be effective factors in improving soil structure through increasing organic carbon in soil. The results of the present study indicated that aggregate stability was affected by biological fertilizer treatments under greenhouse condition so that the treatments containing biofertilizers increased soil aggregate stability and improved the soil structure that was probably due to increasing plant yield and root. Also, the less effect of biofertilizers on the stability of the aggregates and the increase of coarse aggregates under the field condition can be due to the uncontrolled climatic conditions compared to the greenhouse and the short duration of the study. In recent decades, the physical and chemical properties of soils have changed due to the use of chemical inputs in agricultural lands.The use of biological and organic fertilizers is an appropriate solution to these problems. It is recommended further study on the efficacy of other species of mycorrhizal fungi and rhizobium bacteria in improving soil physical and chemical quality, especially at the field scale. Also, considering the implementation of this project in the field condition, it is suggested to study the physical, mechanical and chemical properties of soil in the long term.

Keywords

Biofertilizer; Mean weight diameter; Organic carbon

References

1- Akhtar M.S., and Siddiqui Z.A. 2008. Glomus intraradices, Pseudomonas alcaligenes and Bacillus pumilus: effective agents for the control of root-rot disease complex of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.). Journal of General, Plant Pathology 74: 53-60.

2- Ardakani M.R., Mazaheri M., and Normohammadi G. 2000. The role of azospirillum bacteria in absorption of micronutrients and macro wheat, 6th Iranian Congress of Plant Breeding, page 13-16. (In Persian)

3- BarthèsB G., Kouakoua E., Larre-Larrouy M.C., Razafimbelo T.M., de Luca E.F., Azontonde A., Neves C.S., de Freitas P.L., and Feller C.L. 2008. Texture and sesquioxide effects on water-stable aggregates and organic matter in some tropical soils. Geoderma 143(1): 14-25.

4- Bearden B.N., and Petersen L. 2000. Influence of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi on soil structure and aggregate stability of a vertisol. Plant and Soil 218(1): 173-183.

5- Bethlenfalvay G., Cantrell I., Mihara K., and Schreiner R.P. 1999. Relationships between soil aggregation and mycorrhizae as influenced by soil biota and nitrogen nutrition. Biology and Fertility of Soils 28(4): 356-363.

6- Bissonnais Y.L. 1996. Aggregate stability and assessment of soil crustability and erodibility: I. Theory and methodology. European Journal of Soil Science 47(4): 425-437.

7- Bibourdi M. 1379 .Physics of Soil. Tehran University Press. (In Persian)

8- Bodner G., Scholl P., Loiskandl W., and Kaul H.P. 2013. Environmental and management influences on temporal variability of near saturated soil hydraulic properties. Geoderma 204: 120-129.

9- Bouwmeester H.J., Roux C., Lopez-Raez J.A., and Becard G. 2007. Rhizosphere communication of plants, parasitic plants and AM fungi. Trends in Plant Science 12(5): 224-230.

10- Bronick C.J., and Lal R. 2005. Manuring and rotation effects on soil organic carbon concentration for different aggregate size fractions on two soils in northeastern Ohio, USA. Soil and Tillage Research 81(2): 239-252.

11- Bruce R.C., and Rayment G. 1982. Analytical methods and interpretations used by the Agricultural Chemistry Branch for soil and land use surveys: Queensland Department of Primary Industries.

12- Cheshire M. 1979. Nature and origin of carbohydrates in soils: Academic Press.

13- Clapp C., Davis R., and Waugaman S. 1962. The effect of rhizobial polysaccharides on aggregate stability. Soil Science Society of America Journal 26(5): 466-469.

14- Dıaz-Zorita M., Perfect E., and Grove J. 2002. Disruptive methods for assessing soil structure. Soil and Tillage Research 64(1): 3-22.

15- Feng G., Zhang Y., and Li X. 2001. Effect of external hyphae of arbuscular mycorrhizal plant on water-stable aggregates in sandy soil. Journal of Soil Water Conservation 4: 025.

16- Hamel C., Dalpe Y., Furlan V., and Parent S. 1997. Indigenous populations of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and soil aggregate stability are major determinants of leek (Allium porrum L.) response to inoculation with Glomus intraradices Schenck and Smith or Glomus versiforme (Karsten) Berch. Mycorrhiza 7(4): 187-196.

17- Holford I., and Cullis B.R. 1985. Effects of phosphate buffer capacity on yield response curvature and fertilizer requirements of wheat in relation to soil phosphate tests. Soil Research 23(3): 417-427.

18- Institute S. 1985. SAS user's guide: statistics: Sas Inst.

19- Issa O.M., Le Bissonnais Y., Defarge C., and Trichet J. 2001. Role of a cyanobacterial cover on structural stability of sandy soils in the Sahelian part of western Niger. Geoderma 101(3): 15-30.

20- Jensen A. 1984. Influence of inoculation density of two VAMF and temperature on Trifelium repense. Journal of Botany 4: 239-249.

21- Kemper W.D., and Rosenau R.C. 1986. Aggregate Stability and Size Distribution. p. 425-442. In: Methods of Soil Analysis, Part 1. Physical and Mineralogical Methods. 2nd ed. Agronomy Monograph. 9.

22- Khosrowjerdi M., Shahsavani Sh., Gholipour M., and Asghari H.R. 2013 Effect of Inoculation of Rhizobium and Mycorrhizal Fungus On the absorption of some minerals by chickpea at different levels of ferric sulfate fertilizer. Journal of Crop Production 6(3): 71-87. (In Persian With English abstract)

23- Kohler-Milleret R., Le Bayon R.C., Chenu C., Gobat J.M., and Boivin P. 2013. Impact of two root systems, earthworms and mycorrhizae on the physical properties of an unstable silt loam Luvisol and plant production. Plant and Soil 370(1-2): 251-265.

24- Lal R., and Shukla M.K. 2004. Principles of soil physics: CRC Press.

25- Landau S. 2004. A handbook of statistical analyses using SPSS: CRC.

26- Lebron I., Suarez D., and Yoshida T. 2002. Gypsum effect on the aggregate size and geometry of three sodic soils under reclamation. Soil Science Society of America Journal 66(1): 92-98.

27- Mager D., and Thomas A. 2011. Extracellular polysaccharides from cyanobacterial soil crusts: a review of their role in dryland soil processes. Journal of Arid Environments 75(2): 91-97.

28- Marschner H., and Dell B. 1994. Nutrient uptake in mycorrhizal symbiosis. Plant and Soil 159(1): 89-102.

29- Marshall T.J., Holmes J.W., and Rose C.W. 1996. Soil physics: Cambridge University Press.

30- Martens D., and Frankenberger W. 1993. Soil saccharide extraction and detection. Plant and Soil 149(1): 145-147.

31- Mahmoud Abadi M. 2013 . Effect of different organic matters on time variability of soil aggregate stability at different size fractions. Watershed Management Research (Pajouhesh and Sazandegi) 93: 70-78. (In Persian)

32- Miller R., and Jastrow J. 2000. Mycorrhizal fungi influence soil structure. In "Arbuscular mycorrhizas: physiology and function. Springer 3-18.

33- Mohammad M.J., Pan W., and Kennedy A. 2005. Chemical alteration of the rhizosphere of the mycorrhizal-colonized wheat root. Mycorrhiza 15(4): 259-266.

34- Mohammadi E., Asghari H.R., and Gholami A. 2013. The effect of mycorrhiza inoculation and phosphorus fertilizer on some growth indicators Hashem plant (Cicer arietinum L.) Pea. Agroecology 5(3): 263-271. (In Persian)

35- Nisha R., Kaushik A., and Kaushik C. 2007. Effect of indigenous cyanobacterial application on structural stability and productivity of an organically poor semi-arid soil. Geoderma 138: 49-56.

36- Nesari N., Ghorbani R., and Lashkari A. 2009. Nodulations, nitrogen fixation and growth characteristics of chickpea under metribuzin herbicide application. Journal of Agroecology 1(2): 37-45. (In Persian)

37- Ortas I. 2015. Comparative analyses of Turkey agricultural soils: Potential communities of indigenous and exotic mycorrhiza species' effect on maize (Zea mays L.) growth and nutrient uptakes. European Journal of Soil Biology 69: 79-87.

38- Parmar N., and Dadarwal K. 1999. Stimulation of nitrogen fixation and induction of flavonoid‐like compounds by rhizobacteria. Journal of Applied Microbiology 86(1): 36-44.

39- Rajabzadeh Motlagh F. 2011. Evaluation application of arbuscular mycorrhiza, nitrogen fixing bacteria and nitrogen fertilizer on yield and yield component of Phaseolus vulgaris, MSc Thesis, Faculty of Agriculture, Shahrood University of Technology, Iran. (In Persian)

40- Rasool R., Kukal S., and Hira G. 2007. Soil physical fertility and crop performance as affected by long term application of FYM and inorganic fertilizers in rice–wheat system. Soil and Tillage Research 96(1): 64-72.

41- Richards L. 1954. Diagnosis and Improvement of Alkaline Soils, USDA Handbook 60: US Government Printing Office Washington, DC, USA.

42- Rillig M.C., Wright S.F., and Eviner V.T. 2002. The role of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and glomalin in soil aggregation: comparing effects of five plant species. Plant and Soil 238(2): 325-333.

43- Schreiner R.P., and Bethlenfalvay G.J. 1995. Mycorrhizal interactions in sustainable agriculture. Critical Reviews in Biotechnology 15: 271-285.

44- Schreiner R.P., and Bethlenfalvay G.J. 1997. Plant and soil response to single and mixed species of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi under fungicide stress. Applied Soil Ecology 7(1): 93-102.

45- Sharma S., Gupta R., Dugar G., and Srivastava A.K. 2012. Impact of application of biofertilizers on soil structure and resident microbial community structure and function, Bacteria in Agrobiology: Plant Probiotics 65-77.

46- Siddiky M.R.K., Kohler J., Cosme M., and Rillig M.C. 2012. Soil biota effects on soil structure: Interactions between arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal mycelium and collembolan. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 50: 33-39.

47- Stribley D.P. 1987. Mineral nutrition. PP. 59-66. In: Ecophysiology of VAM Plant. John Willey and Sons, New York.

48- Sulfab H.A. 2013. Effect of Bio-organic Fertilizers on Soil Fertility and Yield of Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) in Malakal Area, Republicof South Sudan, JOUR. of nat. Resour. and Environ. STU: 14-19.

49- Tisdall J., and Oades J. 1980. The effect of crop rotation on aggregation in a red-brown earth. Soil Research 18(4): 423-433.

50- Tisdall J.M., and Oades J.M. 1982. Organic matter and water‐stable aggregates in soils. European Journal of Soil Science 33(2): 141-163.

51- Umer M.I., and Rajab S.M. 2012. Correlation between aggregate stability and microbiological activity in two Russian soil types. Eurasian Rasian Journal of Soil Science 1: 45-50.

52- Walkley A., and Black I.A. 1934. An examination of the Degtjareff method for determining soil organic matter, and a proposed modification of the chromic acid titration method. Soil Science 37(1): 29-38.

53- Wang S., Srivastava A., Wu Q.S., and Fokom R. 2014. The effect of mycorrhizal inoculation on the rhizosphere properties of trifoliate orange (Poncirus trifoliata L. Raf.). Scientia Horticulturae 170: 137-142.

54- Watt M., McCully M., and Jeffree C. 1993. Plant and bacterial mucilages of the maize rhizosphere: comparison of their soil binding properties and histochemistry in a model system. Plant and Soil 151(2): 151-165.

55- Wu Q.S., Cao M.Q., Zou Y.N., and He X.H. 2014. Direct and indirect effects of glomalin, mycorrhizal hyphae, and roots on aggregate stability in rhizosphere of trifoliate orange, Scientific reports, 4.

56- Wu S., Cao Z., Li Z., Cheung K., and Wong M. 2005. Effects of biofertilizer containing N-fixer, P and K solubilizers and AM fungi on maize growth: a greenhouse trial. Geoderma 125(1): 155-166.

57- Yoder R.E. 1936. Direct method of aggregate analysis of soils and a study of the physical nature of erosion losses. Journal of the American Society of Agronomy 28(5): 337-351.