The development of strategies for the use of rhizosphere microorganisms to reduce the use of fertilizers and to control biotic and abiotic adversities: experiences of the FERTLESS Project.

The attention paid to environmental protection and soil biodiversity has driven the need to identify new tools for reducing the use of technical means by agricultural producers within the agri-food chain. The use of natural biostimulants like beneficial rhizosphere microorganisms could limit the supply of fertilizers or pesticides and the release of pollutants, improving crops' resilience to water and thermal stress; as a result, the adaptation of cropping systems to the impact of climate change might be achieved, preserving and implementing the safeguarding of yields, quality, and the profitability of harvesting. The FERTLESS Project, funded by the Emilia Romagna Rural Developing Program (PSR 2014-2020), aims to define a best practice model with low environmental impact applicable at farm level, which includes the use and valorization of rhizosphere microorganisms for the cultivation of economically prominent crops in the Emilia Romagna region; in fact, an agricultural system aiming to address the reduction of pesticides and fertilizers is expected to obtain the recognition of added value on the markets, operating an important function in terms of food safety and consumer awareness. Additionally, best practice models could allow new market opportunities linked to the ever-increasing appreciation for agricultural products made with more environmentally friendly techniques, also solving the following problems:
1. The development of low-impact strategies to reduce/replace synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, ensuring the greater safety of workers and improving the consumers' health;
2. Theachievement of increased yields and improved quality of food and feed products;
3. Economic and environmental savings due to the reduced use of technical means and water resources.
Activities are focused on the validation of new biofertilisers applied in seed coatings or as microgranular products. Their effects have been evaluated in terms of different agronomical parameters to assess the efficacy in ameliorating plants' resilience to abiotic stresses; investigations have been performed in laboratory conditions and experimental fields.