Rhizosphere Microbiome Engineering for Improved Nutrient Uptake in Legumes
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.22688024Keywords:
rhizosphere engineering, synthetic microbial consortium, Phaseolus vulgaris, phosphate solubilisation, nitrogen fixation, plant growth-promoting rhizobacteriaAbstract
Legume yields on phosphorus-deficient soils are frequently constrained less by nitrogen availability, which
symbiotic rhizobia can supply, than by the plant's limited access to sparingly soluble soil phosphate. We
assembled a five-member synthetic microbial consortium (SynCom) combining an elite Rhizobium phaseoli
nodulating strain with four phosphate-solubilising and siderophore-producing rhizobacteria isolated from
bean-cropped soils, and tested it against single-strain and uninoculated controls in common bean (Phaseolus
vulgaris L. cv. Carioca) grown in low-phosphorus Ferralsol under greenhouse and confirmatory field conditions
across two seasons. SynCom-treated plants formed 38% more root nodules and accumulated 61% more shoot
phosphorus than uninoculated controls, with shoot dry biomass increased by 42% at the R6 reproductive stage.
16S rRNA amplicon profiling of the rhizosphere community showed that SynCom introduction reshaped
indigenous community structure beyond simple addition of the inoculated taxa, enriching native Pseudomonas and
Bacillus lineages associated with organic-acid-mediated phosphate release. Field validation at two sites
reproduced the biomass and seed-yield gains seen under controlled conditions, though the magnitude of benefit
varied with baseline soil phosphorus status and was smallest at the site with the highest native rhizobial
population. These results indicate that a rationally assembled, functionally complementary consortium can
outperform single-strain inoculants for phosphorus-limited legume production and that consortium performance is
contingent on the resident soil microbiome rather than acting as an independent, additive input.
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