Microbes and crop production

Abstract

Our environment includes a wide diversity of microbes that interact with plants in different ways. The range of interaction may be from two-partite symbiosis (nodule formation by legume-rhizobia interaction during N2 -fixation) to multipartite epiphytic as well as endophytic. Soil microbes find their major role in cycling of phosphorus, nitrogen, and other nutrients via production of certain exudates. Effective agronomic practices are associated with both beneficial and biocontrol mechanisms of microbes associated with symbiosis. To develop a microbe-based sustainable agriculture, fundamental knowledge of molecular biology, evolution, ecology, and genetics are needed. The employment of such relevant studies could lead to more prominent productivity as well as adaptive functions. The microbial-based crop production could lead to the replacement of hazardous chemicals with biofertilizers, thereby reducing the cost and enhancing the quality of agricultural products thus obtained.