OBTAINING PROMISING STRAINS FROM WILD PLANTS FOR AGRICULTURAL USE

The studies were conducted to create new consortia of microorganisms obtained from wild plant species (hypericum, oregano, plantain and reed) and to test their ability to be maintained in the soil and rhizosphere. The properties of 216 bacterial isolates that are important for protecting and stimulating plant growth, both in laboratory and field conditions, were determined, namely, enzymatic activity, including phytase, protease, lipase, nitrogenase, cellulase and amylase. In addition, the antagonistic activity of the isolates to the phytopathogenic fungus Fusarium oxysporum was tested. Then isolates were identified by comparing the 16S rRNA gene sequences. Pathogenic bacteria were then screened out and the most promising bacterial isolates were selected based on their enzymatic activities, from which a consortium was assembled to test the possibility of its maintenance in the soil and rhizosphere of Universiade wheat plants. For this purpose, the seeds were treated with the consortium at a dose of ×107 CFU/ml in a 1% carboxymethylcellulose solution and the soil and roots of the control and test plants were washed after 14 days. The presence or absence of the strains under study was determined by polymerase chain reaction fingerprinting. The consortium of microorganisms was better preserved in the soil than on the roots of plants. Its use increased the shoot length of experimental plants, relative to the control, by 38.6% (from 10.6 cm to 14.7 cm), the length of the root system by 22.1% (from 12.2 cm to 14.9 cm) and seed germination by 3.0% (from 87% to 90%). The obtained data can be used for further experiments and practical application in agriculture.