Ecology, Environment and Conservation Paper

IN VITRO INOCULATION OF PHOSPHATE-SOLUBILIZING MICROORGANISMS IN SEEDLINGS OF MANGABA (HANCORNIA SPECIOSA GOMES)

Juliana Silva Rodrigues Cabral, Edson Luiz Souchie, Flávia Dionísio Pereira and Fabiano Guimarães Silva

Abstract

The use of plant growth promoting microorganisms has been recommended due to the beneficial effects, such as increased leaf area, leaf number, and dry matter, decreased acclimation time, and greater seedling survival following transplanting. The mangaba tree (Hancornia speciosa Gomes) is a fruit tree with high potential for commercial exploitation and is naturally found in Brazil. Among the native fruit trees of the Cerrado (tropical savanna), the mangaba tree is one of the most promising for use in sustainable programs; its use has been proposed as a way to contribute to the conservation of the tree species and to decrease poverty in areas where mangaba is naturally occurring and grows well. The goal of the present study was to test methods of inoculating mangaba seedlings grown in vitro with phosphate-solubilizing bacteria and fungi isolates. In experiment I, the in vitro inoculation of mangaba seedlings with rhizosphere isolates was tested in flask. In experiment II, the effects of the in vitro inoculation with rhizosphere isolates on the growth of mangaba seedlings were tested. There are P-solubilizing bacteria and fungi isolates able to maximize the in vitro propagation of mangabeira. The bacterial isolate MF6 inoculated during micropropagation of mangabeira provides more average number of buds and expanded leaves. Higher average height of shoots and average number of buds of mangabeira is obtained by inoculation of the fungal isolate MF4.