AUTHOR=Comeau Dominique , Balthazar Carole , Novinscak Amy , Bouhamdani Nadia , Joly David L. , Filion Martin 

TITLE=Interactions Between Bacillus Spp., Pseudomonas Spp. and Cannabis sativa Promote Plant Growth

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Microbiology

VOLUME=12

YEAR=2021

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2021.715758

DOI=10.3389/fmicb.2021.715758

ISSN=1664-302X

ABSTRACT=<p>Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) deploy several mechanisms to improve plant health, growth and yield. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of two <italic>Pseudomonas</italic> spp. strains and three <italic>Bacillus</italic> spp. strains used as single treatments and in consortia to improve the yield of <italic>Cannabis sativa</italic> and characterize the impact of these treatments on the diversity, structure and functions of the rhizosphere microbiome. Herein, we demonstrate a significant <italic>C. sativa</italic> yield increase up to 70% when inoculated with three different <italic>Pseudomonas</italic> spp./<italic>Bacillus</italic> spp. consortia but not with single inoculation treatments. This growth-promoting effect was observed in two different commercial soil substrates commonly used to grow cannabis: Promix and Canna coco. Marker-based genomic analysis highlighted <italic>Bacillus</italic> spp. as the main modulator of the rhizosphere microbiome diversity and <italic>Pseudomonas</italic> spp. as being strongly associated with plant growth promotion. We describe an increase abundance of predicted PGPR metabolic pathways linked with growth-promoting interactions in <italic>C. sativa</italic>.</p>