A study led by researchers from the Department of Microbiology at the University of Malaga has revealed how organic farming—using natural substances and processes and avoiding the use of synthetic chemicals—can, in the long term, help crops become more resistant to drought in a natural way.
This research team, which also belongs to the Institute of Subtropical and Mediterranean Horticulture "La Mayora" (IHSM), has demonstrated that this sustainable agricultural management system enriches specific groups of soil microorganisms, particularly bacteria, helping plants to stand up to climate change.
Specifically, this research confirms that soils treated organically for decades favor the increase of bacteria, especially the genus Bacillus, which are characterized by being highly resilient to survive in extreme conditions and act as a "protective shield" for plants. The results of this research have been published in the journal npj Biofilms and Microbiomes.
Invisible allies of plants
For the development of this study, two avocado orchards were compared: one managed organically, without chemicals and with organic matter, and the other conventionally, using fertilizers and intensive management, both located in the area of the Axarquía in Malaga.
"By comparing the rhizosphere (the soil attached to plant roots) of crops under organic and conventional management over 20 years, we identified important differences in their physicochemical properties that play a key role in the composition of microbial communities, observing an abundance of bacteria of the genus Bacillus," explains the researcher and first author of this paper Blanca Ruiz Muñoz.
Click here to see more...