Are mungbean-compatible wild bradyrhizobia more resilient to abiotic stress?

Abstract

Bradyrhizobia required by mungbean for nitrogen fixation can be impacted by abiotic stresses, reducing nitrogen fixation and yield. Wild bradyrhizobia were collected from ten sites in the dry tropics of Queensland and compared with the commercial strain for performance of inoculated mungbeans, under neutral and acid soil conditions. We found thirteen of the fifteen strains tested promoted growth at least as well as the commercial strain under both acid and neutral conditions. Two significantly outperformed the commercial
strain under neutral conditions. This study suggests that gains could be made in mungbean performance through use of better-adapted bradyrhizobia.