Characterisation of rhizobacterial communities of Eucalyptus species and hybrids

Abstract

ntroduction: Good quality Eucalyptus is of importance to South Africa’s pulp and paper industry. Limited land is available for forestry, therefore Eucalyptus with genotypes for good pulp and paper qualities, particularly hybrids, are bred and cloned via cuttings. Although these Eucalyptus clones keep the favourable genotypes in the population, many have difficulty with rooting. Research has shown that rhizobacteria can improve rooting. Thus, one strategy to enhance the rooting of cuttings is to use rhizobacterial preparations. The aim of this study was to characterise rhizobacterial communities of Eucalyptus hybrid and species and identify possible plant-growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR). Materials and methods: Rhizospheric samples were collected from Eucalyptus hybrids and species. The rhizobacterial communities were characterised using fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) analysis and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE). DGGE fragments were further sequenced to identify rhizobacteria. Results and discussion: FAME analysis successfully achieved a broad characterisation of the Eucalyptus hybrid and species rhizobacterial communities based on their fatty acid composition. Myristic acid (C14:0) was the most abundant fatty acid. DGGE profiles gave a molecular profile of the Eucalyptus hybrid and species rhizobacterial communities based on their DNA composition. Nitrosomona eutropha was present in all samples which illustrates a nitrogen-rich environment. Adhaenbacter aquaticus was unique to the better rooting Eucalyptus hybrid GU111. Conclusion: This study provided some insight into the diversity of rhizobacterial communities of Eucalyptus hybrids and species. Possible PGPR were identified and the observation made that the nature of the soil environment changes with the aging of the associated host. These findings allow further investigation into the formulation of potential rhizobacterial preparations for rooting enhancement of Eucalyptus cuttings.