Short-term effects of a photosynthetic microbial consortium and nitrogen fertilization on soil chemical properties, growth, and yield of wheat under greenhouse conditions

This study evaluated the effects of the application of a photosynthetic and N-fixing microbial consortium (biofertilizer) on some chemical properties of a vertisol soil and on the growth and yield of Triticum aestivum L. var. Barcenas S2002. The experimental design consisted on the chemical nitrogen fertilization (labeled as Q) based on 120 kg N ha−1 by using (NH4)2SO4 as the N source, and its combination with the application of the microbial consortium (labeled as B), resulting in the following five treatments: Q (control), B, QB1 (75%Q + 25%B), QB2 (50%Q + 50%B), and QB3 (25%Q + 75%B). The QB1 and Q treatments favored the accumulation of NO3− in soil. Regarding the effects on plants, the application of B resulted in significantly enhanced 1000-grain weight and grain yield as compared to the application of Q; the grain nitrogen content was similar between Q, QB1, QB2, and QB3 treatments. In addition, the QB2 and QB3 treatments allowed high values of grain yield (50–83 g m−2) and grain nitrogen content (3.1–3.5%) without showing significant differences when compared to Q treatment (100% of nitrogen chemical fertilization). These results allow a reduction of 75% of chemical fertilization for wheat production, due to complementary effects of the photosynthetic microbial consortium, which had beneficial effects on plant growth and yield as well as on soil parameters.