The overall goal of this research project is to increase profitability of soybean production by simultaneously enhancing yield as well as tolerance against biotic and abiotic stresses. Plant growth promoting microbes not only stimulate plant growth but can also confer resistance to microbes that cause plant diseases. The PI’s group is characterizing strains of the naturally occurring, nonpathogenic soil fungi Trichoderma spp. that serve as biocontrol agents to confer enhanced resistance against pathogens in many plant species, including soybean, tomato and tobacco. The Trichoderma spp. also improve plant growth and development, suggesting that these microbes induce root to shoot signaling...
Unique Keywords:
#breeding & genetics