Bacteria

Azotobacter Question and Answer June 2007
Richard Haard, Four Courner Nursery, Bellingham, Washington, June 11, 2007

Question by Sean Barry:
RH ". . .Learning about potential for enrichment culture of Azotobacter and trying to measure available nitrogen in this situation."

Here you mention promoting the growth of nitrogen fixing Azotobacter. I have always been interested in the possibility of inoculating charcoal with mycorrhizal fungi.

Learning to use wood charcoal in farming at a Northwestern Washington native plant nursery.
Richard Haard, Fourth Corner Nurseries, Washington, Febuary 20, 2007
My motivation for preparing this post is to be able to use this motivate discussion of charcoal as a soil additive. Trying to do this work at a very busy nursery that is perhaps pushing their production factor too high (over 80%) is rather frustrating as experiments have gotten over ruled by planning changes, wiped out by harvest before I can read the data and the conditions set up for the experiment just do not work. However, I have been encouraged however and I am now using hardwood charcoal as a carrier for natural inocculum as a matter of routine.
Fourth Corner Nurseries is a wholesale supplier of native plant species, located on 77 acres in the coastal lowlands of northwestern Washington, USA. With approximately 40 acres under cultivation, we produce two/three million direct-seeded, field-grown, bare-root native plants annually. Our principal crop is individually seed-sourced, bare-root deciduous trees and shrubs, herbaceous perennials, grasses and emergent species such as sedges, cattails and rushes for environmental restoration purposes. Our mission is to sustainably grow plants while supporting workers and their families who depend on the farm for their economic subsistence. Use of surplus biomass from our willow coppice field and other materials is our alternative energy vision.
Aerial view of our farm

Effects of Soil Microbial Fertility by Charcoal in Soil
Makoto Ogawa, Kansai Environment Engineering Center, Kansai Electric Power Co. Ltd, UGA Conference 2004

Characteristics and Function of Charcoal

1.Porous substance with high water and air holding capacity; Suitable habitat for some microbes and plant growth, good material for soil amendment, absorption of chemicals and humidity control

2.High alkalinity ; Neutralization of acidic soil and improvement of chemical components of soil and

Symbiosis between Frankia and actinorhizal plants: Root nodules of non-legumes
K Pawlowski & A Sirrenberg, Indian Journal of Experimental Biology, Vol. 41, October 2003, pp. 1165-1183

Rhizobacterial diversity in India and its influence on soil and plant health
Johri BN et al.Adv Biochem Eng Biotechnol, 2003, 84, 49 - 89

Actinorhizal Trees Useful in Cool to Cold Regions
NFT Highlights,NFTA 86-03, May 1986, FACTNEt, Winrick International

Bio-fertiliers
Indiaagronet.com Manures & Fertilizers

Enriching vermicompost by nitrogen fixing and phosphate solubilizing bacteria
Vivek KumarCorresponding Author Contact Information, a and K. P. Singhb
a Department of Microbiology, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar-125 004, India
b Department of Agronomy, CCS Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar-125 004, India

Abstract

Development of multiple co-inoculants of different biofertilizers and their interaction with plants
Pooja Suneja a; S. S. Dudeja a; Neeru Narula a
Department of Microbiology, CCS Haryana Agricultural University. Hisar. India 7 April 2007
Archives of Agronomy and Soil Science, Volume 53, Issue 2 April 2007 , pages 221 - 230

Abstract

Azotobacter is a genus of free-living diazotrophic bacteria whose resting stage is a cyst. It is primarily found in neutral to alkaline soils, in aquatic environments, and on some plants. It has several metabolic capabilties, including atmospheric nitrogen fixation by conversion to ammonia. Their unique system of three distinct nitrogenase enzymes makes these bacteria of particular interest to scientists, who may work toward a better understanding of nitrogen fixation and its role in agriculture. Azotobacter spp. have the highest metabolic rate of any organisms.

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