What Are Beneficial Bacteria For Plants?

Beneficial: favorable or advantageous; resulting in good.

Bacteria: microscopic, single-celled organisms lacking chlorophyll that reproduce by fission; are present in most habitats, and live in symbiotic and parasitic relationships with plants and animals.

Bacteria are present in a wide range of habitats, and have evolved in conditions where no other organisms can survive.  They may have positive or negative effects depending on the species and the circumstance of their inoculation.

They are among the first organisms believed to inhabit the earth; and have played a role in the evolution of life as we know it today.  They are a diverse range of species, where it is believed that only half been identified to date.

Beneficial bacteria for plants are often referred to as Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria (PGPR).  These PGPR can colonize plants in the rhizosphere (root zone) or as Endophytes (inside plants).

PGPR act to prevent damage from plant pathogens.  They have direct and indirect effects on plant growth and health.  Many individual species contribute to growth and health in multiple ways.  The multi functionality of PGPR is in direct relation to having a diverse living soil ecosystem.  These bacteria compete and/or work together depending on your specific growing conditions to maximize plant performance.

Beneficial Bacteria Are Probiotics For Plants

Individual plants work on the concept of ‘host specificity’.  Plants and bacteria send signals in the form of exudates that are released for a specific function or response.  Plants choose what PGPR are needed for specific growing conditions.  Individual PGPR strains may be crop specific, cultivar specific, or non-specific for root colonization to occur.  Therefore, having a diverse culture of PGPR allows for the best chance of colonization and success.

Beneficial bacteria for plants are a critical component of a healthy, productive living soil; and are essential for many functions that give your plants what they need for a successful grow.

What Do Beneficial Bacteria Do For Your Plants?

  • Increase Macro and Micronutrient uptake.
  • Fix N (Nitrogen) and solubilize P (Phosphorus).
  • Break down organic matter contributing to C (Carbon) and N cycles.
  • Produce secondary metabolites such as phytohormones and antibiotics that protect plants from pathogens and encourages plant growth and health.
  • Protect plants from abiotic stress (heat, cold, drought, salinity, nutrient depletion, heavy metals).
  • Promotes Biointensive, regenerative agriculture and horticulture

Why Are Beneficial Bacteria For Plants Essential To Your Grow?

Like mycorrhizal fungi, beneficial bacteria are a requirement to a productive living soil.  A true living soil is an ecosystem.  And a healthy ecosystem contains diversity.  In Biointensive growing, your diverse soil ecosystem works to maximize nutrient and water uptake, and give your plants an environment to survive and thrive.

In humans, poor gut health, and the resulting health issues are often the result of pathogenic bacteria colonization.  The same goes for plants.  The ‘rhizosphere’, or root zone is like the gut of plants.  When pathogens are able to invade the rhizosphere, plant loss may follow.  Similar to how probiotics improve gut health in humans, PGPR are the “plant probiotics” that improve plant and soil health and vigor.

The diversity of organisms in a healthy soil is profound.  Billions upon billions of bacteria and fungi competing and coexisting for survival.  The most diverse ecosystem on the planet, with up to 100 billion(!) bacteria per gram of soil.  The key is in having the right balance, and species of beneficials to optimize your grow.

How Do Beneficial Bacteria Benefit Your Plants?

The diverse selection of PGPR in GreenEden Biostimulants serve the many functions that your plants need for the best production and yields.

17 total species, from highly studied beneficial PGPR strains Bacillus, Pseudomonas, and Streptomyces.  Each with a unique set of tools that will give you impressive results and resilient plants.

These beneficial soil microbes were specifically chosen to serve as multifunctional triggers to enhance organic matter breakdown and nutrient uptake, protect plants from pests and disease, and naturally regenerate soils.  Scientific literature cites numerous ways in which these selected PGPR benefit soils and plants.

Beneficial bacteria function in three main ways;  Each with its own contribution to a healthy living soil and vibrant plants.

  1. Synthesize specific compounds for plant needs (Auxins, Cytokinins, etc.).
  2. Facilitate nutrient uptake from the soil (Macro and Micronutrients).
  3. Lessen or prevent root and plant disease.

Beneficial Bacteria as a Biostimulant/Biofertilizer 

Plant Biostimulants (Biofertilizers) are any substance or microorganism applied to plants with the aim to enhance nutrition efficiency, abiotic stress tolerance and/or crop quality traits, regardless of its nutrients content.  These may have indirect (biostimulant) or direct (biofertilzer) effects on plant growth.

Nitrogen fixing bacteria such as Pseudomonas putida and Paenibacillus polymyxa are able to convert atmospheric nitrogen to a form that is usable by plants.  In addition, the ability other PGPR  to solubilize Phosphorus and other nutrients results in fertilizer use that is up to 30% less with the use of beneficial bacteria.

The PGPR in GreenEden Biostimulants also release phytohormones, proteins, enzymes, and other secondary metabolites that plants can use to enhance growth.

Compounds Formed by Beneficial Bacteria that Boost Plant Growth 

  • Auxins:  Hormone involved in cell elongation, plant growth regulation, and adventitious root formation.
  • Cytokinins:  Hormone that promotes cell division, cell growth, and bud growth.
  • Gibberellins:  Stimulates stem elongation, germination, flowering, and trichome development.
  • IAA (Indole-3-Acetic Acid):  Hormone that induces cell elongation, signals development of plant organs, and coordinates growth.
  • ACC (Acetyl-CoA carboxylase):  Enzyme that regulates ethylene production to enhance germination and seedling survival.

Beneficial Bacteria as a Biocontrol

Biocontrol agents function in multiple ways, and act as natural enemies to pests and pathogens.  They control pests by interference with their ecological status through parasitism, predation, out-competing, and other methods.

Similar to the exudates formed by PGPR that enhance plant growth, others are released that contribute to plant protection and health.  These PGPR compete with pathogens and other bacteria, and are signaled by plants to  assist in plant protection.

Induced Systemic Resistance (ISR) is created by exudates released by PGPR; and triggers a defensive response in plants.  This response allows for plants to protect themselves from various pathogens.  Strains of Pseudomonas, Streptomyces, and Bacillus PGPR have been shown to activate ISR in many plant species.

Compounds Formed by Beneficial Bacteria that Protect Plants

  • Siderophores:  Enzyme that chelates iron, in turn making it unavailable to pathogens.
  • Antibiotics:  Stress metabolites formed by PGPR that inhibit pathogens (Antibiosis).
  • Chitinase:  An enzyme that degrades chitin, what makes up the cell walls of pathogenic fungi and other pests.
  • Terpenes:  Organic compounds released by plants and PGPR as a response to biotic or abiotic stress; serving many biologic and defensive functions.

Pathogens Controlled by Beneficial Bacteria

Simplify The Science

Every growing situation is unique.  When you add a diverse and potent concentration of Beneficial Bacteria, your likelihood of success is maximized.

The 17 strains of Bacillus, Pseudomonas, and Streptomyces beneficial bacteria in our Green Eden Products were specifically chosen to guarantee the greatest probability of colonization with the greatest range of plant species and growing conditions.

The diversity of our PGPR takes advantage of the ‘rhizosphere effect’.  This is where plant roots will select specific PRPR based on environmental conditions, soil type, and plant species present.  Giving you an easy-to-implement solution to massive yields and production.

Don’t complicate the science.  Exploit nature, in a good way.  

The Bottom Line:

  Beneficial Bacteria for plants help to maximize yields, and Boost Your Grow the Natural Way.