DOI: 10.36347/sajp

Pages: 327-332

Global warming and climate change have resulted in unexpected drought, stormy rainfalls, extremely high temperature, cold damage and hurricanes in many places around the world where such disastrous tragedy had never occurred in the past decades. Establishing an environmental friendly co-existing mechanism on earth is of vital importance. In recent years, agrochemicals are extensively applied to obtain higher yield. Intensive application of agrochemicals leads to several agricultural problems and poor cropping systems. Farmers use more chemical fertilizers than the recommended levels for many crops. Excessive use of chemical nitrogen fertilizer not only accelerates soil acidification but also risks contaminating groundwater and the atmosphere. The extensive research program on beneficial bacteria and fungi has resulted in the development of a wide range of bio-fertilizers, which satisfied the nutrient requirements of crops and increased the crop yield as well. Many experiments in greenhouses and in field conditions have revealed that different crops responded positively to microbial inoculations. In particular, successful rhizobial inoculants were applied to leguminous plants and AM fungi for muskmelons in order to increase the yield and quality. Multifunctional bio-fertilizers were developed to reduce about 1/3- 1/2 of chemical fertilizer application. In the future, enhancement and maintenance of soil fertility through microorganisms will be a very significant concern