Bacteria for Plants

Bacteria for plants can be either beneficial for the plant or detrimental to the plant. In this post we’ll talk about beneficial bacteria for plants, specifically beneficial soil bacteria.

It is well known that beneficial plant bacteria play a critical role in supporting and increasing plant growth and plant health. Because of their ability to confer benefits to the plant, it is important that beneficial bacteria adequately colonize the plant’s environment, specifically the plant root system.

Here’s a brief introduction to two key beneficial plant bacteria, Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus megaterium.

Bacillus subtilis

Bacillus subtilis is a key beneficial plant bacteria. B. subtilis plays a role in replenishing soil nutrients through both the carbon cycle and the nitrogen cycle. To aid the carbon cycle B. subtilis degrades thatch, pectin, cellulose and other organic materials. B. subtilis forms biofilms which are dense populations of organisms. These biofilms provides the plants with preventive colonization. While beyond the scope of this post, preventative colonization essentially prohibits other microorganism from forming colonies around the plant roots.

Bacillus megaterium

Another key beneficial plant bacteria is Bacillus megaterium. In addition to some of the benefits conferred by B. subtilis, B. megaterium is known to be a phosphate solubilizing bacteria (PSB). PSBs make phosphorus more available for the plants, reduce the need for traditional phosphate applications, reduce environmental problems downstream, and promote sustainable agriculture.

Beneficial Plant Bacteria

The use of beneficial plant bacteria, like those above, has a very positive effect on plant growth, root mass, and crop yields. Specifically, beneficial plant bacteria produce plants with better growth response, biomass yield, and nutrient content when compared to plants without these important beneficial soil bacteria.

Custom Biologicals manufactures a wide variety of microbial products including products that contain beneficial plant bacteria. Contact Custom at (561) 797-3008 or via email at Bill@Custombio.biz.