Mitigation of salinity in chickpea by Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria and salicylic acid

For growth or development of pulses, biotic and abiotic environmental factors are more conspicuous under stress conditions. For the survival against abiotic stresses, salicylic acid (SA) is reported a universal remedy. At the Soil Bacteriology Section, Ayub Agricultural Research Institute, Faisalabad, a pot study was conducted to monitor the role of Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria (PGPR) and Salicylic acid in chickpea under salt stress. Eight treatments including control PGPR inoculation and Salicylic acid with their different combination were used. Results revealed that positive response of PGPR on productivity of chickpea but more enunciated response about grain yield was observed with the combined application of SA and PGPR compared to control. Growth parameters i.e root length, root mass, number of nodules and shoot mass were highly affected where SA was applied along with PGPR. From the study, it is proposed that under salt stress the combination of SA + PGPR can be a suitable practice for more production of chickpean Pakistan.