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Enhancing seed quality of Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus (L.) Moench) through native root endophytic bacteria
* 1 , 2 , 1 , 3
1  Department of Vegetable Science, Maharana Pratap Horticultural University (MHU), Karnal 132001, Haryana, India
2  Department of Plant Protection, Maharana Pratap Horticultural University (MHU), Karnal 132001, Haryana, India
3  Department of Vegetable Science, Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University (CCSHAU), Hisar 125004, Haryana, India
Academic Editor: Lorenzo Negri

Published: 20 October 2025 by MDPI in The 3rd International Online Conference on Agriculture session Crop Production
Abstract:

Bacterial endophytes are symbiotic microbes that live inside the internal tissue of plants and promote their growth by various mechanisms such as phyto hormone production, nutrient solubilization, and tolerance to biotic and abiotic stress. Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus (L.) Moench) is a popular vegetable worldwide due to its tender nutritious pods; however, its production is limited due to poor seed quality and low germination. Okra has a hard seed coat, which is a hindrance in germination and intensifies this problem. Bacterial endophytes have the potential to solve this problem by producing phyto hormones like GA3 that break seed dormancy and by producing various enzymes that can soften its hard seed coat. Therefore, this study was conducted at MHU, Karnal, with the aim to improve the seed quality of okra using bacterial endophytes in CRD design with the treatment of 47 different endophytic bacterial isolates, which were retrieved from the roots of healthy okra plants. To evaluate their effect on seed quality, a paper test was conducted by treating sterilized okra seeds with different bacterial isolates @ 1×106 cfu/ml for 24hr and key seed quality parameters were evaluated after 10 days of inoculation as per standards of the ISTA. All the isolates improved the seed quality parameters over the control: ONRE-26 achieved the highest seedling length of 31.24cm, a germination rate of 82%, a seedling fresh weight of 4.84g, a vigor index I of 2561.27 and a vigor index II of 33.42, while the control achieved a seedling length of 27.21cm, germination rate of 68.50%, seedling fresh weight of 3.51g, vigor index I of 1868.76 and vigor index II of 26.05. Isolate ONRE-26 was identified as Pseudomonas fluorescens using 16s rRNA sequencing. It can be concluded that bacterial endophytes, particularly ONRE-26, significantly enhance okra seed quality under in vitro conditions. These findings suggest their promising role as eco-friendly biostimulants for the sustainable improvement of crop production.

Keywords: Okra, Endophytes, Seed quality

 
 
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