Growth-promoting effect of potassium-solubilizing microorganisms on some crop species

Abstract

Potassium (K) is an essential substance for plant growth. With the fast development of world agriculture, attainable soils K levels have dropped due to crop removal, leaching, runoff, and erosion. The potassium is a fundamental macronutrient for plant growth and plays important roles in making active of several metabolic processes including protein synthesis, photosynthesis, and enzyme activation. Whole soil K reserves are usually large despite the fact that the distribution of potassium forms differs from soil to soil as a role of the dominant soil minerals present. Many microorganisms in the soil are capable to solubilize “unavailable” forms of K-bearing minerals, such as micas, illite, and orthoclases by expelling organic acids which either directly dissolve rock K or chelate silicon ions to bring the K into solution. In this article, we are focusing on the enhancement of potassium to the plant by the help of efficient potassium-solubilizing microorganisms (KSMs) with specific crop species examples.