Search for Articles:
Title / Keyword
Author / Affiliation / Email
Journal
Article Type
 
 
Advanced Search
 
Section
Special Issue
Volume
Issue
Number
Page
 
6.2
3.3
Journals
Agronomy
Special Issues
Microorganisms in Agriculture—Nutrition and Health of Plants
share announcement

Microorganisms in Agriculture—Nutrition and Health of Plants

A special issue of Agronomy (ISSN 2073-4395). This special issue belongs to the section "Soil and Plant Nutrition".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2025 | Viewed by 1865

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Gustavo Brunetto

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Soil Science, Federal University of Santa Maria, Prédio 42, Office 3309, Avenida Roraima 1000, Santa Maria 95105-900, Brazil
Interests: plant nutrition; soil fertility; fertilization; fruit quality; heavy metals; roots; sustainable orchards and vineyards
Dr. Paulo Ademar Avelar Ferreira

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Soil Science Department, Federal University of Santa Maria, Santa Maria 97105-900, Brazil
Interests: soil microbiology and biochemistry; soil fertility; plant physiology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Microorganisms contribute to plant nutrition and health by acting as biofertilizers, decomposers, and growth-promoters, increasing the soil availability of essential nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Nitrogen-fixing bacteria, such as those of the Rhizobium genus, are associated with the roots of legumes, converting atmospheric nitrogen into forms which can be used by plants. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi are also associated with the roots, increasing the absorption of water and nutrients such as phosphorus, alongside helping with environmental stress resistance. These microorganisms also suppress soil pathogens through mechanisms such as nutrient competition and antimicrobial compound production. Bacteria of the genus Bacillus and fungi such as Trichoderma are examples of biocontrol agents widely used in disease control. The use of microorganisms in agriculture is a sustainable alternative to chemical fertilizers and pesticides, contributing to soil microbiological balance, improving its long-term quality. However, the effectiveness of these microorganisms depends on suitable environmental conditions and proper soil management, allowing them to establish themselves and successfully support plant growth and health.

Prof. Dr. Gustavo Brunetto
Dr. Paulo Ademar Avelar Ferreira
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Agronomy is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • biological control
  • mycorrhizal fungi
  • biological nitrogen fixation
  • nutrient cycling

Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue

  • Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
  • Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
  • Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
  • External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
  • e-Book format: Special Issues with more than 10 articles can be published as dedicated e-books, ensuring wide and rapid dissemination.

Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (2 papers)

Download All Papers
Order results
Result details
Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:

Research

27 pages, 6195 KiB  
Article
Microbiome-Mediated Mechanisms Regulating Adaptability to Iron Deficiency in the Intercropping System of Soybean and Maize
by Wuyu Liu, Guoqing Wang, Shiming Wen, Yiwen Zhao, Yuxin Ding, Baihui Yao, Zhelin Wang, Duntao Shu, Gehong Wei, Juan Chen and Zhouping Shangguan
Agronomy 2025, 15(2), 286; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy15020286 - 23 Jan 2025
Viewed by 582
Abstract
Iron (Fe) deficiency is a pervasive agricultural concern on a global scale. Intercropping plays a pivotal role in activating soil nutrient cycling and crop nutrient uptake and utilization. This study integrates plant physiology, soil physicochemical determination, high-throughput sequencing, and metabolomics techniques to conduct [...] Read more.
Iron (Fe) deficiency is a pervasive agricultural concern on a global scale. Intercropping plays a pivotal role in activating soil nutrient cycling and crop nutrient uptake and utilization. This study integrates plant physiology, soil physicochemical determination, high-throughput sequencing, and metabolomics techniques to conduct pot experiments using field-collected soils with soybean and maize plants. This study aims to investigate the mechanisms through which microorganisms in a soybean–maize intercropping system regulate Fe deficiency adaptation. The results revealed that intercropping enhances the resilience of soybean and maize in Fe-deficient environments, facilitates nutrient absorption by plants, and enriches soil nutrient content. Moreover, intercropping fostered more intricate microbial interactions in comparison to monocropping. The dominant microorganisms in the rhizosphere of intercropped soybean and maize included genera Microbacterium, Sphingomonas, Shinella, and Rhizobium. Microbacterium, Sphingomonas, Shinella, and Rhizobium have the potential to produce Fe chelators or enhance plant Fe absorption. Additionally, intercropping notably modified the composition of root exudates derived from soybean and maize. The soybean and maize rhizosphere exhibited significant enrichment with oleamide, coumestrol, glycitein, and daidzein. Coumestrol may have an effect of promoting Fe absorption, and it is significantly positively correlated with the genus Nakamurella in the maize rhizosphere and the genus Pirellula in the soybean rhizosphere. Consequently, these findings suggested that the rhizosphere of intercropped soybean and maize significantly enriches specific microbial communities and root exudates, thereby enhancing microecosystem stability and improving plant tolerance to Fe deficiency. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microorganisms in Agriculture—Nutrition and Health of Plants)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

16 pages, 3067 KiB  
Article
Field Application of Mycorrhizal Inoculant Influences Growth, Nutrition, and Physiological Parameters of Corn Plants and Affects Soil Microbiological Attributes
by Paulo Ademar Avelar Ferreira, Carina Marchezan, Gustavo Scopel, Natalia Teixeira Schwab, Emanuela Pille da Silva, Cláudio Roberto Fonsêca Sousa Soares, Gustavo Brunetto and Sidney Luiz Stürmer
Agronomy 2024, 14(12), 3006; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy14123006 - 17 Dec 2024
Viewed by 1059
Abstract
Mycorrhizal inoculants can contribute to the development of corn crops by improving crop productivity. In this sense, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of a mycorrhizal inoculant on the dynamics of root system growth, gas exchange, corn crop productivity, [...] Read more.
Mycorrhizal inoculants can contribute to the development of corn crops by improving crop productivity. In this sense, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of a mycorrhizal inoculant on the dynamics of root system growth, gas exchange, corn crop productivity, and microbial activity in the rhizospheric soil in a no-till area with different levels of available soil phosphorus. The experiment was conducted during the 2019/2020 and 2020/2021 growing seasons. At 75 days after plant emergence, root morphological parameters (total root length (cm), average root diameter (mm), root surface area (cm2), and root volume), shoot biomass production, P content in the plant shoots, gas exchange, and microbiological attributes of the rhizospheric soil of corn were evaluated. At the end of the cycle, corn grain yield was determined. A beneficial effect of AMF inoculation was observed on the root and shoot parameters regardless of soil P level. Under conditions of evenly distributed rainfall during the experiment (2019/2020 season), AMF inoculation contributed to a 90% increase in acid phosphatase activity and a 76% increase in microbial biomass carbon (C-BIO), independent of soil P level. In contrast, under water deficit conditions (2020/2021 season), AMF inoculation provided a 29% increase in grain yield. We concluded that introducing a commercial mycorrhizal inoculant in corn benefits root system morphological parameters and physiological traits, and favors the activity of enzymes related to increased P availability, contributing to increased crop productivity in a no-till system. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Microorganisms in Agriculture—Nutrition and Health of Plants)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Show export options expand_more Show export options expand_less
Select all
Export citation of selected articles as:
 
Displaying articles 1-2
Back to TopTop