Field Application of Rhizobial Inoculants in Enhancing Faba Bean Production in Acidic Soils: An Innovative Strategy to Improve Crop Productivity

Faba bean is the most vital legume crop in Ethiopia, but abiotic stresses primarily soil acidity are an obstacle for its production. Soil acidity disturbs and potentially limits nitrogen-fixing symbiosis. The interruption of nitrogen fixation and faba bean rhizobia interaction as a result of soil acidity leads to decreasing crop production. Sole dependence on chemical fertilizers for agricultural growth would mean further loss in soil quality and increased environmental damage. Rhizobial species show off sizable metabolic abilities to mitigate abiotic and biotic stresses, and mechanisms in stress tolerance are advancing fast, offering a strong foundation for the choice and engineering of rhizobia and legume hosts with better tolerance to soil acidity accordingly. The vast efforts to pick bioinoculants that can restore nitrogen under acid-affected soils are producing competitive crop yields. The main challenge of using single-type bioinoculant in field application can lead to variable and inconsistent outcomes. Co-inoculation of compatible microbes with organic farming which does not involve use of synthetic pesticides and chemical fertilizers is an imperative element in sustainable agriculture. Therefore, the present chapter focuses on the field application of faba bean rhizobial inoculants in acidic soils as a promising potential input in organic farming system. Moreover, the mechanism of N2 fixation and plant growth promotion systems under severe salt, drought, acidity, temperature, and heavy metal stresses is also highlighted.