Document Type : Original Article
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Abstract
This study evaluated the effectiveness of beneficial microorganisms in mitigating salinity, ionic toxicity, and heavy metal stress after irrigation with reclaimed water, in a ten-years-old olive trees during the 2022 and 2023 seasons. Trees were inoculated with Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus cereus, or the arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus Glomus mosseae, and compared with control. The inoculation treatments significantly increased soil Ca (calcium) and K (potassium) availability, and decreased Na (sodium), Cl (chloride), and Cd (cadmium) availability. The treated trees exhibited lower leaf Na, Cl, and Cd, with enhanced relative water content and fruit oil level, higher carbohydrate and proline levels, and increased peroxidase activity. The photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance, transpiration, and intercellular CO₂ concentration, shoot fresh and dry biomass and growth significantly boosted by microorganisms. B. subtilis showed the best performance. Data demonstrated that beneficial microorganisms may serve as an effective and sustainable strategy to enhance olive resilience and productivity under saline soils and reclaimed water irrigation.
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