EVALUATION OF PLANT GROWTH PROMOTING POTENTIALS EXHIBITED BY RHIZOBACTERIA ASSOCIATED WITH BEANS PLANT

Plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) isolated from the rhizosphere of velvet Beans plant grown on the agricultural research farmland of Federal University of Technology, Owerri, were evaluated for their growth promoting potentials. The four isolates: Micrococcus sp, Bacillus sp, Corynebacterium sp, and Enterococcus sp, were evaluated for plant growth promoting abilities, such as phosphate solubilization, indole acetic acid (IAA), ammonia (NH3), and Hydrogen Cyanide (HCN) production. Micrococcus sp, Bacillus sp, and Enterococcus sp produced IAA, while Corynebacterium sp, and also Bacillus sp and Enterococus sp solubilized phosphate. All the isolates were able to produce HCN and NH3. Rhizobacteria associated with beans plant constitute important sources of potentially beneficial microorganisms with plant growth promoting activity or antagonistic effects against phytopathogens. The results obtained in this study suggests that these rhizobacteria possess multiple plant growth promoting attributes which can be applied as biofertilizers or as biocontrol agents in agriculture, to improve plant growth and productivity.