Lotus spp. nodulating rhizobia resistant to salinity
Abstract
In Southern Brazil, paddy soils are potentially subjected to salinization caused by the excess of salts in irrigation water used in rice fields. This process can be increased by the use of fertilizers such as KCl. These areas are periodically used to raise cattle and soil salinization can affect legumes, like Lotus spp., which are introduced to improve forage quality. This paper intended to evaluate Lotus spp. nodulating rhizobia, native from Rio Grande do Sul soils, for their resistance to salinity. The growth of different rhizobial isolates and recommended strains was evaluated in increasing doses of (4, 8, 12, 16 and 20 g L-1) of NaCl or KCl in yeast mannitol broth. Among the studied rhizobia, eleven were resistant up to the concentration of 12 g L-1 of NaCl and six were resistant up to 20 g L-1 of KCl. The iso- lates UFRGS Lc 372, UFRGS Lc 516 and UFRGS Lc 520 have shown a high resistance to saline stress and may be an option for the production of inoculants to saline soils. Among the strains recommended for Lotus spp., only SEMIA 849 is resistant to the different concentrations of NaCl and KCl.
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