Microbes in human welfare: biofertilizers,

and biopesticides

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Biofertilizers
• 'Biofertilizer' is a substance which contains living microorganisms
which, when applied to seed, plant surfaces, or soil, colonizes the
rhizosphere or the interior of the plant and promotes growth by
increasing the supply or availability of primary nutrients to the host
plant.

• Main part of INSS (Integrated Nutrient Supply System)

• Biofertilizers add nutrients through the natural processes of fixing

atmospheric nitrogen, solubilizing phosphorus, and stimulating plant
growth through the synthesis of growth promoting substances.

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 Types of Biofertilizers
Group Sub-group
Nitrogen fixing Free-living
Symbiotic
Associative
Endophyte
Phosphorus (microphos) Phosphate solubilizing
Phosphate mobilizing
Potassium Potassium solubilizing
Potash mobilizing
Micronutrients Silicate and zinc solubilizing
Sulfur-solubilizing
Iron transformation
Manganese transformation
Copper transformation
Growth promoting Plant growth promoting rhizobacteria
Drought and saline tolerance Pink Pigmented Facultative Methanotrophs
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 Group Sub-group Examples
Nitrogen Free-living Important: Anabaena azollae, Azotobacter
fixing chroococcum, Beijerinkia, Nostoc, Bacillus polymyxa,
Clostridium, and Klebsiella
Minor: Derxia, Aulosira, Cylindrospermum,
Tolypothrix, Stigonema, Rhodopseudomonas,
Rhodospirillum, Desulfovibrio, and Chromatium
Symbiotic Rhizobia (Rhizobium, Bradyrhizobium,
Sinorhizobium, Azorhizobium Mesorhizobium
Allorhizobium), Frankia, Anabaena azollae, and
Trichodesmium
Associative Important: Azospirillum spp. (A. brasilense, A.
lipoferum, A. amazonense, A. halopraeferens, and A.
irakense), Herbaspirillum spp., Acetobacter
diazotrophicus,
Minor: Azoarcus spp., Alcaligenes, Bacillus,
Enterobacter, Klebsiella, and Pseudomonas
28-02-2024 Endophyte Gluconacetobacter diazotrophicus (Sugarcane) 5
 EFFECTIVE ROOT
NODULES CAUSED BY
RHIZOBIUM

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Azotobacter chroococcum

Azospirillum lipoferum

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 Gluconacetobacter diazotrophicus
Cavalcantae and Doberiner – 1988 reported this new endophytic N2 fixer
Endophytic N2 fixers - Found to occur on large numbers in roots, stem &
leaf of sugarcane & other sugar rich crops

Brown pigmentation of Formation of chocolate brown colonies

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G. diazotrophicus
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 Group Sub-group Examples
Phosphorus Phosphate Important: Bacillus megaterium var.
(microphos) solubilizing phosphaticum, Gluconacetobacter
diazotrophicus, B. subtilis, B. circulans, B.
polymyxa, Pseudomonas striata, Penicillium
spp., Aspergillus awamori & Trichoderma.
Minor: Rhizoctonia solani, Rhizobium,
Burkholderia, Achromobacter, Agrobacterium,
Microccocus, Aereobacter, Flavobacterium, and
Erwinia
Phosphate Arbuscular mycorrhiza (Glomus sp., Gigaspora
mobilizing sp., Acaulospora sp., Scutellospora sp., and
Sclerocystis sp.)
Ectomycorrhiza (Laccaria spp., Pisolithus spp.,
Boletus spp., Amanita spp.),
Ericoid mycorrhizae (Pezizella ericae), and
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 Bacillus megatherium Pseudomonas striata

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 Group Sub-group Examples
Potassium Potassium Bacillus edaphicus, Bacillus circulans, Bacillus
solubilizing brevis, Bacillus coagulans, Burkholderia cepacia,
Burkholderia metallica, Pseudomonas otitidis,
Torulopsora globosa and Paenibacillus
glucanolyticus
Potash Bacillus mucilaginosus, Pseudomonas gessardii
mobilizing and Enterobacter asburiae
Micronutrients Silicate and Bacillus subtilis, Gluconacetobacter diazotrophicus,
zinc solubilizing Thiobacillus thioxidans, Rhizobium daejeonense,
Pantoea dispersa, Pantoea agglomerans and
Saccharomyces sp.
Sulfur- Thiobacillus thioxidans, Beggiatoa, and
solubilizing Desulfovibrio
Iron Gallionella, Ferribacterium, and Leptothrix
transformation
Manganese Aerobacter, Cornybacterium, Flavobacterium, and
transformation Cladosporium
Copper Desulfovibrio, Clostridium, and Escherichia
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transformation
 Burkholderia cepacia

Bacillus mucilaginosus (Paenibacillus mucilaginosus)

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 Bacillus subtilis

Thiobacillus thioxidans Flavobacterium Escherichia

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 Group Sub-group Examples
Growth Plant growth Important: Pseudomonas fluorescens,
promoting promoting Azotobacter, Bacillus, Rhizobium,
rhizobacteria Bradyrhizobium, and Streptomyces.
Minor: Agrobacterium, Achromobacter,
Alcaligenes, Arthrobacter, Actinoplanes,
Erwinia, Enterobacter, Amorphosporangium,
Cellulomonas, Flavobacterium, and
Xanthomonas.
Drought and Pink Pigmented Methylobacterium extorquens,
saline Facultative Methylobacterium
tolerance Methanotrophs dichloromethanicum, Methylobacterium
rhodinum

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Pseudomonas fluorescens Methylobacterium extorquens 15
 Methods of Application of Biofertilizers
Seed Treatment: 200 g of biofertilizer is suspended in 300- 400 mL of water
and mixed gently with 10 kg of seeds using an adhesive like gum acacia,
jiggery solution, etc. The seeds are then spread on a clean sheet/cloth under
shade to dry and used immediately for sowing.

Seedling Root Dip: Recommended biofertilizers are mixed in this water and
the roots of seedlings are dipped for 8-10 h and transplanted.

Soil Treatment: 4 kg each of the recommended biofertilizers is mixed in 200

kg of compost and kept overnight. This mixture is incorporated in the soil at the
time of sowing or planting.

Sett Treatment: Suspended and mixed thoroughly 15 kg bio fertilizer for one
hectare in 300 lit of water. Treat cane sett by dipping in this suspension before
planting.

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 Microbial Biopesticide

Biopesticide are certain types of pesticides derived from such natural

materials as animals, plants, bacteria and certain minerals.
In commercial terms, biopesticides include microorganisms that control
pests (microbial pesticides), naturally-occurring substances that control
pests (biochemical pesticides), and pesticidal substances produced by
plants containing added genetic material (plant-incorporated
protectants).

Types of Microbial Biopesticides (broadly called as biocontrol agents)

• Bioinsecticide (broadly called as biopesticides)
• Biofungicide (broadly called as antagonists)
• Bionematicide
• Bioherbicide
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Bioinsecticides Target pest
Fungi
Beauveria bassiana Aphids, beetles, coffee berry borer, grasshoppers, thrips, white
grubs, whiteflies, and many lepidopteran pests
Beauveria brongniartii White grubs
Metarhizium anisopliae Aphids, beetles and their grubs, leaf and plant hoppers,
termites, pod borer, cutworms and other lepidopteran pests
Lecanicillium (=Verticillium) lecanii Aphids, mealybugs, mites, scale insects, thrips, mites,
whiteflies and other homopterans
Hirsutella thompsonii Mites especially eriophids in coconut
Isaria fumosorosea (=Paecilomyces Aphids, thrips, jassids, whiteflies and mites
fumosoroseus)
Bacteria
Bacillus thuringiensis var. kurstaki Lepidopteran pests
Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. israelensis Mosquitoes, black fly and fungus gnat larvae
Lysinibacillus sphaericus
Bacillus thuringiensis subsp. galleriae Bollworms, diamondback moth and other Lepidoptera
Virus
Nuclear polyhedrosis virus of H. armigera (HaNPV) Helicoverpa zea and H. armigera
Nuclear polyhedrosis virus of S. litura (SlNPV) Spodoptera litura and S. exigua
Granulosis virus Leaf folder, Yellow top borer
Cytoplasmic polyhedrosis virus Helicoverpa armigera
Pox virus Amsacta moorei
Entomopathogenic Nematodes
Steinernema carpocapsae, Steinernema Root grubs, cutworms, root weevils, various lepidopterans and
thermophilum,
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Heterorhabditis indica termites 18
Heterorhabditis bacteriophora Root and foliar pests
 Beauveria bassiana

Metarhizium anisopliae

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 Bacillus thuringiensis var. kurstaki

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Biofungicides Target diseases
Fungi
Ampelomyces quisqualis Powdery mildew
Chaetomium globosum Damping off
Darluca filum Rust
Trichoderma hamatum, T. harzianum, T. Root and soil borne diseases
koningii, T. polysporum, T. viride
Verticillium hemileiae Coffee rust
Bacteria
Agrobacterium radiobacter Crown gall
Bacillus subtilis Soil borne and foliar diseases
Pseudomonas fluorescens Soil borne and foliar diseases
Streptomyces diastaticus Soil borne and foliar diseases
Virus
Bacteriophages Foliar bacterial diseases
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 Trichoderma viride Pseudomonas fluorescens

Chaetomium globosum Ampelomyces quisqualis

Darluca filum

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Bionematicides Target nematodes
Fungi
Purpureocillium lilacinum Plant pathogenic nematodes
(= Paecilomyces lilacinus)
Pochonia chlamydosporia (=Verticillium Plant pathogenic nematodes,
chlamydosporium) especially root-knot nematodes
Bacteria
Pasteuria penetrans Plant pathogenic nematodes, especially root-
knot nematodes
Pseudomonas aeruginosa Plant pathogenic nematodes, especially root-
knot nematodes
Pseudomonas fluorescens Plant pathogenic nematodes, especially root-
knot nematodes
Bacillus subtilis Plant pathogenic nematodes, especially root-
knot nematodes

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 Purpureocillium lilacinum (= Paecilomyces lilacinus)

Pochonia chlamydosporia Pasteuria penetrans

(=Verticillium chlamydosporium)

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Bioherbicides Target weeds
Fungi
Colletotrichum gloeosporioides Northern jointwetch, Round leave-mallow,
Biomal Dodders, Hakea, Velvet leaf
Phytophthora palmivora Milkweedvine
Alternaria destruens Dodders
Puccinia canaliculata Yellow nut sedge
Cercospora rodmanii Water hyacinth
Bacteria
Ralstonia solanacearum Tropical soda apple

Colletotrichum gloeosporioides Phytophthora palmivora

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Thank You 26