Cereal seed inoculation by a natural strain of Azospirillum for a sustainable and resilient agriculture – AZODURE

This project 1/ develops an industrial scale methodology of inoculation of seeds with a symbiotic bacterial strain 2/ defines the legal framework of the use of this technology 3/ evaluates the impact of the use of this technology on the functioning of the plant, the field (bacterial communities associated with nitrogen and carbon cycles as well as on root system morphology control - water status of the soil) and the socio-economic network 4/ link socio-economic, political and educational bodies to popularize the technology and have it implemented

Early work of the project has aimed to define the factors responsible for the lack of reproducibility of the effect of the technology on the modification of the root system architecture by the symbiotic bacteria. Assays under controlled conditions with maize as a model cereal crop have identified two such factors : 1/ the response of maize to the inoculated symbiotic bacterium is cultivar-dependent, some cultivars even yielding no response 2/ contaminations of the bacterial inoculants during the many steps of seed preparation need to be avoided because they lead to inoculation failure.

During the upcoming year, the following points will be studied: 1/ impact of pedoclimatic conditions on the success of the symbiotic relationship 2/ legal status of the technology 3/ evaluation of the various industrial technologies available to coat live bacteria on dry seeds 4/ sowing and evaluation of a field trial on 3 sites with conventional farming and 1 with organic farming.

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AZODURE aims to develop Azospirillum inoculation technology for cereal seeds so that it can be implemented in the next decade as an alternative agricultural practice to reduce fertilization needs and plant sensitivity to erratic climatic fluctuations, and satisfy social aspiration for an environmentally friendly agriculture that maximizes field eco-efficiency. Azospirillum is a naturally-occurring associative symbiotic bacterial genus that enhances cereal roots development and performance, therefore enhancing crop performance. AZODURE is a multidisciplinary and industrial research project that innovates on its three objectives : 1/ industrial agroengineering innovation development with concern for the seed inoculation technology and the legal framework; 2/ gain of knowledge on ecosystemic medium-term (4 years) benefits (for plants, soil natural bacterial communities and soil water retention capacity) as well as crop productivity and economic gain; 3/ interaction with the socio-economic, political and higher education actors for outreach and dissemination of technology implementation. Partners and actors will work jointly on 9 closely-linked tasks. The Isère/Porte-des-Alpes (IPA) territory will serve as framework to develop these tasks mobilizing a range of scientific disciplines (microbial ecology, plant ecophysiology, agronomy and soil science, economy, law) along with a range of stakeholders (a private company, farmer organizations, policy makers, education actors).