Do you cultivate beans, peas, or any different legumes in your garden or backyard? Have you heard of seed inoculation and how to utilize it to boost your yield? Learn more about this to make the most of your plants.
The inoculation process for seeds is defined as the addition or mixing of beneficial bacteria in garden seeds. (Farmers also utilize inoculated seeds for their farms!) The reason for mixing is to ensure that the correct strain of bacteria will be able to establish a productive synergy with the plant to fix nitrogen in the atmosphere for the plant to ensure that you don’t have to add more fertilizer. Vaccination can also increase the yield and growth of the plant.
Treatment of seeds is different from seed inoculation. Seed treatment involves exposing the source to cold and hot and then letting it soak in the water. Chemicals are then applied to protect the plant from pests and for better seed germination.
Vaccination is crucial, especially if the plant you’re growing is in soil that wasn’t produced in prior years. Inoculants can aid in boosting the number of bacteria that will work in symbiosis to fix nitrogen in the plant.
Peas are a popular gardening crop that can be bought already inoculated. The inoculant has beneficial bacteria that interact with the pea plant’s roots to increase their yielding. Credit: SV Fisk
How are the seeds that have been inoculated made?
In the case of peas, Seed companies will isolate the bacterium from the root nodules of healthy peas. The bacterium is then grown in a lab. It is usually carried out on a large-scale production scale to ensure effectiveness. The bacteria are mixed with peat to boost the volume, and then the inoculant is ready.
The inoculants that are available typically have 1,000 times the amount of bacteria usually located in the soil. It’s like taking a probiotic to improve the health of your gut. Thus, using the seeds that have been inoculated is simply increasing the number of bacteria and the amount of bacteria to reap the benefits. Sometimes, the soil might not have the necessary bacteria, so your peas and other legumes will only grow sometimes.
What is the best way to inoculate?
There are pre-inoculated seeds available that contain germs and bacteria. They are already mingled. Numerous companies offer these seeds. You can also purchase an inoculant blend and mix it into your seeds or soil. It is a good idea to add sugar or an agent that sticks to help the inoculant mixture adhere to the roots or soil when mixing it on your own. Most farmers use the process of inoculant mixture when they have to plant more on a larger scale. Inoculating the earth is effective when you’ve already planted your seeds.
Seed inoculants are secure and have been shown not to cause any adverse effect on seeds – even when you do over-inoculate. This means they’re perfect for gardeners at home because they do not require any additional training to adhere to.
The inoculants need to be handled with attention because they are fragile and delicate microorganisms. Inoculants exposed to heat, extreme moisture, direct sunlight, or extreme temperatures can cause the death of microbes, leaving them ineffective. (Like other probiotics, they should be kept in a refrigerator).
Rhizobia nodules: The bright red color of the opened nodule indicates healthy rhizobia (bacteria) inside. Like humans, plants have leghemoglobin, which binds with atmospheric oxygen and helps the nitrogen fixation process. Like hemoglobin, leghemoglobin turns red when in contact with oxygen, testifying to its active status. Credit: Jennifer Dean via Creative Commons 2.0 License
About the bacteria and what’s happening?
The bacteria that establish a symbiotic relationship with legumes and aid in fixing atmospheric nitrogen belong to the genus Rhizobia. The various species of this bacteria are distinct depending on the plant or legume. Rhizobia infects the hairs on the roots of legumes. They create tiny swellings on plant roots, called root nodules.
