Phosphorus solubilizing bacteria and biochar improve maize growth in different textured soils

Phosphorus is an important macronutrient which directly affects the growth and yield attributes of maize. Besides its presence in soil, it is highly immobilized which decreased its phytoavailability. This problem can be overcome by inoculation of phosphate solubilizing bacteria (PSB) and biochar. Inoculation of PSB can mobilize phosphorus in soil and increase the root elongation for better uptake of nutrients. Biochar is another allied amendment which can decrease the leaching and runoff losses of phosphorus fertilizers, especially in sandy texture soils. That is why the current study was conducted to examine the role of biochar and PSB on maize growth under different soil textures. There were two PSB Achromobacter xylosoxidans (BS1) and Alcaligenes faecalis (BS15) applied with and without biochar in clay loam and sandy clay loam textures. Results showed that PSB (Alcaligenes faecalis) and biochar collectively showed better results from PSB (Achromobacter xylosoxidans) with biochar. It is probably because of the reason that they have better abilities to colonize around root surface and improved K contents were noticed in coarse textured soil.