Utilisation of Microorganisms

in the field

The soil represents heterogenous habitat in which the environmental conditions can differ markedly from one microhabitat to the next. These different micro-habitats in the soil correspond to a large number of ecological niches, in which different microorganisms are present. Therefore, the microbial biodiversity of the soil ecosystem is very high. Soil microorganisms with certain traits of interest have been isolated from soil and are already used as inoculants (Table 1). However, the natural diversity of the microbial community of the soil has been little explored until recently and soil microorganisms represent a useful source for the isolation of new strains that could be exploited as microbial inoculants in agriculture or for industrial applications.

Selective cultivation media can be used to discriminate between microorganisms present in the rhizosphere.

Table 1

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