Nitrogen fertilization regulates crosstalk between marandu palisadegrass and Herbaspirillum seropedicae: An investigation based on 15N isotopic analysis and root morphology

Abstract

Strategies seeking to increase the use efficiency of nitrogen (N) fertilizers and that benefit plant growth through multiple mechanisms can reduce production costs and contribute to more sustainable agriculture free of polluting residues. Under controlled conditions, we investigated the compatibility between foliar inoculation with an endophytic diazotrophic bacterium (Herbaspirillum seropedicae HRC54) at control and low, medium and high N fertilization levels (0, 25, 50 and 100 mg of N kg^-1 as urea, respectively) in Marandu palisadegrass. Common procedures in our research field (biometric and nutritional assessments) were combined with isotopic techniques (natural abundance - δ¹⁵N‰ and ¹⁵N isotope dilution) and root scanning to determine the contribution of fixed N and recovery of N fertilizer by the grass. Overall, the combined use of ¹⁵N isotopic techniques revealed that inoculation not only improved the recovery of applied N-urea from the soil but also provided fixed nitrogen to Marandu palisade grass, resulting in an increase in the total accumulated N. When inoculated plants grew at control and low levels of N, a positive cascade effect encompassing root growth stimulation (nodes of smaller diameter roots), better soil and fertilizer resource exploitation and increased forage production was observed. In contrast, increasing N reduced the contributions of N fixed by H. seropedicae from 21.5% at the control level to 8.6% at the high N level. Given the minimal to no observed growth promotion, this condition was deemed inhibitory to the positive effects of H. seropedicae. We discuss how to make better use of H. seropedicae inoculation in Marandu palisadegrass, albeit on a small scale, thus contributing to a more rational and efficient use of N fertilizers. Finally, we pose questions for future investigations based on ¹⁵N isotopic techniques under field conditions, which have great applicability potential.

Keywords: Endophytic diazotrophic bacteria; N recovery; Plant growth-promoting bacteria; Urea (15)N; Urochloa brizantha cv. marandu.