Microbes as Biofertilizers, a Potential Approach for Sustainable Crop Production

Shaista Nosheen, Iqra Ajmal and Yuanda Song
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Shaista Nosheen: Colin Ratledge Center for Microbial Lipids, School of Agricultural Engineering and Food Science, Shandong University of Technology, Zibo 255000, China
Iqra Ajmal: Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China
Yuanda Song: Colin Ratledge Center for Microbial Lipids, School of Agricultural Engineering and Food Science, Shandong University of Technology, Zibo 255000, China

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 4, 1-20

Abstract: Continuous decline of earth’s natural resources and increased use of hazardous chemical fertilizers pose a great concern for the future of agriculture. Biofertilizers are a promising alternative to hazardous chemical fertilizers and are gaining importance for attaining sustainable agriculture. Biofertilizers play a key role in increasing crop yield and maintaining long-term soil fertility, which is essential for meeting global food demand. Microbes can interact with the crop plants and enhance their immunity, growth, and development. Nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium, zinc, and silica are the essential nutrients required for the proper growth of crops, but these nutrients are naturally present in insolubilized or complex forms. Certain microorganisms render them soluble and make them available to the plants. The potential microbes, their mode of action, along with their effect on crops, are discussed in this review. Biofertilizers, being cost effective, non-toxic, and eco-friendly, serve as a good substitute for expensive and harmful chemical fertilizers. The knowledge gained from this review can help us to understand the importance of microbes in agriculture and the ways to formulate these microbes as biofertilizers for sustainable crop production.

Keywords: biofertilizers; microorganisms; soil fertility; crop productivity; sustainable agriculture; chemical fertilizers (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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