Enhancing Oil Palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.) Growth Using Microbial Consortia: Roles of Phosphate Solubilization and Nitrogen Fixation
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Abstract
In Thailand, oil palm is a vital economic crop, primarily cultivated in the southern region. Farmers are expanding plantations by establishing new sites and replanting previous crop areas. Proper maintenance from the seedling stage is essential for growth. Agriculturists place rock phosphate at the planting hole base to speed seedling recovery after transplantation. Converting rock phosphate into water-soluble phosphate, essential for root development and pre-planting, is a labor-intensive process dependent on microbial activity. The objective of this investigation is to identify microbes capable of converting insoluble phosphate into a soluble form in water. Furthermore, oil palm seedlings require a significant amount of nitrogen. Therefore, nitrogen-fixing microorganisms are also screened. Several phosphate-soluble microorganisms have been identified, especially the NN311 strain, which is the most effective at releasing water-soluble phosphate, both qualitatively and quantitatively. For nitrogen fixation, strain NT7 performed best. NN311 was classified as Pseudomonas sp., whereas NT7 was classified as Bacillus sp., according to nucleic acid sequence analysis in comparison to the NCBI database. In the absence of antagonistic interactions between NN311 and NT7, they were assessed simultaneously in nursery research. The results indicated that the application of these microorganisms, individually or in combination, markedly enhanced seedling growth compared to the control group. Nonetheless, combining them yields optimal outcomes. The combination of NN311 and NT7 with rock phosphate in the planting hole enhances seedling growth post-transplantation. After 18 months, seedlings treated with both strains of bacteria exhibit much superior growth compared to those that do not receive microorganisms.
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