The Role of Fertilizers and Plant Growth-Promoting Bacteria in Improving Crop Productivity
A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Crop Physiology and Crop Production".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2025 | Viewed by 435
Special Issue Editors
Interests: soil science; crop production; plant growth-promoting bacteria
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: plant nutrition; fertilization; soil fertility; efficiency-enhanced fertilizers; plant growth-promoting bacteria associated with reduced fertilization
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: soil fertility; nutrient cycling; soil microbial activity
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
By 2050, crop production must increase by over 70% to meet future demands. This significant challenge requires integrated efforts to preserve natural resources, support intensive agriculture, and minimize environmental impacts. Achieving higher yields of grains, fiber, energy, and biomass will necessitate greater resource efficiency; otherwise, the world may face severe product shortages in the upcoming decades. However, the increased demand for food security may drive excessive agricultural input use, degrading soil and water quality globally, and exacerbating climate change.
Among various strategies for enhancing agricultural productivity, the rational use of plant nutrients, combined with biotechnologies such as inoculation with plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB), is considered one of the most effective approaches for maintaining soil, crop, and environmental health. Over recent decades, numerous techniques have been developed to reduce fertilizer dependence, aiming to lower costs and mitigate the environmental risks associated with heavy chemical fertilization and extreme climatic conditions. Integrating nutrient management strategies and advanced technologies can significantly improve nutrient-use efficiency across diverse environmental settings.
PGPB inoculation plays a crucial role in mitigating environmental stress caused by climate extremes and excessive fertilizer application. This technique is increasingly recognized as a sustainable and eco-friendly alternative for crop management, enhancing plant nutrition while reducing reliance on synthetic fertilizers. A truly sustainable approach to nutrient use in agriculture, supported by PGPBs, requires a comprehensive reassessment of nutrient dynamics in soil, crop uptake, feeding systems, and nutrient runoff potential.
This Special Issue welcomes original research, perspectives, hypotheses, opinions, reviews, modeling approaches, and methodological studies focusing on plant nutrient–crop interactions, with an emphasis on PGPB applications in fertilization. Contributions exploring PGPBs in relation to beneficial elements (e.g., Se, Si, and Co), heavy metals (e.g., Pb, Cr, Cd, As, and Hg), and harsh environmental conditions are also encouraged.
Dr. Fernando Shintate Galindo
Dr. Marcelo Carvalho Minhoto Teixeira Filho
Dr. Paulo Pagliari
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Plants is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- nutrient acquisition
- nutrient-use efficiency
- plant growth-promoting bacteria
- sustainable agriculture
- biofertilizers
- inoculants
- nutrient solubilization
- biological nitrogen fixation
- beneficial elements
- heavy metals Inoculants
- nutrient solubilization
- biological nitrogen fixation
- beneficial elements
- heavy metals
Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue
- Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
- Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
- Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
- External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
- Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.
Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.
