Effect of inoculation of Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria on Growth, Plant nutrient Content and Yield in Onion (Allium cepa)

An experiment was conducted to study the effect of plant growth promoting rhizobacteria with efficient isolates with graded levels of P2O5 on onion (Allium cepa L.) during rabi season of 2020-21 at Post Graduate Farm, Department of Plant Pathology and Microbiology, Mahatma Phule Krishi Vidyapeeth, Rahuri, Maharashtra. The experiment was laid out in randomized block design with six treatments and four replications. The seedlings inoculation of Pseudomonas+ Azotobacter+ Bacillus + 100% P2O5 showed the maximum growth in growth and yield attributing characters of onion such as number of leaves, shoot length, root length, total fresh weight of shoot and root, fresh bulb weight and yield than other treatments. The second best treatment i.e. dual inoculation of Pseudomonas+ Azotobacter + Bacillus but lowered the dose of chemical fertilisers by 25%, resulting in a 75% P2O5 application. Application of seedling treatment of PGPR viz., Pseudomonas, Azotobacter and Bacillus spp. along with 75% chemical fertiliser to onion at the time of transplanting for 15 minutes which were at par with 100% chemical fertiliser this means that there is saving of 25% chemical fertiliser dose without any significant reduction in onion crop yield. The application of efficient strains of phosphate solubilizing (PGPR) could reduce ‘P2O5’ fertilizer application by 25% without any significant reduction in crop yield.