Screening of soil rhizobacteria isolated from wheat plants grown in the Marrakech region (Morocco,North Africa) for plant growth promoting activities

Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (pgpr) are beneficial bacteria that colonize plant roots and improve plant growth using a variety of direct and indirect mechanisms. these mechanisms can affect hormone production,solubilization of different minerals and nutrients and even protection from phytopathogens. the use of pgpr thus offers a powerful eco-friendly alternative to chemical fertilizers and pesticides and constitutes a great tool for not only improving the yield and quality of various crops but also maintaining the sustainability of agro-ecosystems. in this study,we have isolated,screened and characterized bacteria from the rhizospheric soil of wheat plants in the region of saada,marrakech,morocco. the plant growth promoting activities of 8 isolated strains were evaluated through in vitro screening for iaa production,phosphate solublization,ammonia production,n-fixation,hcn production as well as cellulolytic and pectinase activities. additionally,the pgpr isolates were also tested for antagonistic activities against phytopathogenic fungi such as fusarium oxysporum,fusarium graminearum,and verticillium dahliae. © 2017,university of mohammed premier oujda morocco.