This study was conducted to study the long-term impact of bioinoculants,
Azotobacter chroococcum and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) on growth and biomass yield of
Jatropha curcas grown in nursery and in field conditions. The experiment was set up in a randomized block design, and the following treatments was designed (
T1 = control,
T2 =
Azotobacter,
T3 = inoculation with AMF, and
T4 = inoculation with
Azotobacter + AMF). Data on various growth attributes (shoot height and shoot diameter) and biochemical parameters [leaf relative water content (LRWC), sugars, protein, and photosynthetic pigments] were recorded up to 6 months in the nursery and in the field (18 months). Results pertaining to morpho-physiological traits showed
Azotobacter and AMF consortia increase shoot height, shoot diameter, LRWC, sugars, proteins, and photosynthetic pigments over control under nursery conditions. Besides enhancing the plant growth, these bioinoculants helped in better establishment of
Jatropha plants under field conditions. A significant improvement in the shoot height, shoot diameter, fruit yield/plant, and seed yield (g)/plant was evident in 18-month-old
Jatropha plants under field conditions when
Azotobacter and AMF were co-inoculated. This work supports the application of bioinoculants for establishment of
Jatropha curcas in semi-arid regions.
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