Microbial Biofertilizers in Xeriscaping

A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Crop Physiology and Crop Production".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 December 2022) | Viewed by 1847

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CREA Research Centre for Vegetable and Ornamental Crops, Via dei Fiori 8, 51012 Pescia, Italy
Interests: microbiology; symbiotic bacteria and fungi; sustainable agriculture
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Xeriscaping is a method of landscaping or gardening that reduces or eliminates the need for irrigation. It is promoted in regions that do not have accessible, plentiful, or reliable supplies of fresh water and is gaining popularity in other regions as access to irrigation water becomes limited, though it is not limited to such regions. Xeriscaping may be an alternative to various types of traditional gardening. A biofertilizer is a substance that contains living micro-organisms which, when applied to seeds, plant surfaces, or soil, colonize the rhizosphere or the interior of the plant and promote growth by increasing the supply or availability of primary nutrients to the host plant. It is demonstrated that biofertilizers have different effects in different environments and even within the same environment. This is a research direction that many scientists have made progress in, but there is still no perfect solution. However, xeriscaping is shown to have the most profound effects in drier climates. In the future, it is hoped that the effects of biofertilizers will be better controlled and regulated in all environments. Therefore, it is necessary to expand our knowledge in this area of research.

Dr. Domenico Prisa
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • abiotic stress
  • dry environment
  • rhizosphere
  • microbial symbiosis
  • soil biodiversity
  • microbial interactions
  • cactus plants
  • plants stimulation

Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

11 pages, 9477 KiB  
Article
Evaluation of the Bio-Stimulating Activity of Lake Algae Extracts on Edible Cacti Mammillaria prolifera and Mammillaria glassii
by Domenico Prisa and Damiano Spagnuolo
Plants 2022, 11(24), 3586; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11243586 - 19 Dec 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1463
Abstract
The research aimed to test different seaweed extracts derived from three macroalgae representatives, namely, Rhodophyta, Chlorophyta and Phaeophyceae, as a bio-fertiliser for the growth of Mammillaria prolifera and Mammillaria glassii and the production of edible fruits. The experiments started in September 2021 [...] Read more.
The research aimed to test different seaweed extracts derived from three macroalgae representatives, namely, Rhodophyta, Chlorophyta and Phaeophyceae, as a bio-fertiliser for the growth of Mammillaria prolifera and Mammillaria glassii and the production of edible fruits. The experiments started in September 2021 and were conducted in the greenhouses of CREA-OF in Pescia (PT). Three different algae, namely, Hypnea cornuta (Rhodophyta), Ulva ohnoi (Chlorophyta), collected from the brackish lake Ganzirri, in Messina, and Sargassum muticum (Phaeophyceae) from Venice lagoon, were tested. The experimental trial showed a significant improvement in the agronomic parameters analysed for the growth and production of cactus plants and fruits treated with the selected algae. A significant increase was found in the sugar, vitamin A, vitamin C and vitamin E content of the fruits of treated plants. In particular, the thesis with Ulva ohnoi was the best for plant growth and fruit production with a higher sugar and vitamin content. This experiment confirms the algae’s ability to stimulate soil microflora and microfauna, promoting nutrient uptake, participating in organic matter mineralisation processes and significantly influencing the nutraceutical compounds in the fruits. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microbial Biofertilizers in Xeriscaping)
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