Microbial Strategies for Vegetable Production / edited by Almas Zaidi, Mohammad Saghir Khan.

Part 1. Microbial Inoculants in Organic Vegetable Production: Current Perspective -- 1. Introduction -- 2. Need of organic vegetables -- 3. Essential characteristics of organic farming systems -- 4. Microbial inoculants as components of organic production -- 5. Microbes as bio-control agents for suppression of plant diseases -- 6. Microbes for decomposition of organic residues -- 7. Factors affecting the efficacy of microbial inoculants -- Part 2. Plant growth promoting bacteria: Importance in vegetable production -- 1. Introduction -- 2. Place of PGPR in Food safety and agricultural challenges -- 3. Mechanism of growth promotion by PGPR-A general perspective -- 4. PGPR-hydrolytic enzymes -- 5. Systemic tolerance and systemic resistance induction by PGPR -- Part 3. Role of Nitrogen Fixing Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria in Sustainable Production of Vegetables: Current Perspective -- 1. Introduction -- 2. Rationale for using nitrogen fixers in vegetable production -- 3. Nitrogen fixers-Vegetable Interactions: How nitrogen fixers enter vegetables -- 4. Mechanism of vegetable Growth Promotion by nitrogen fixing plant growth promoting rhizobacteria -- 5. Nitrogen fixing plant growth promoting rhizobacteria improve vegetable production: A general perspective -- 6. Effects of nitrogen fixing plant growth promoting rhizobacteria on important vegetable crops -- Part 4. Role of Plant growth Promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) in the improvement of vegetable crop production under stress conditions -- 1. Introduction -- 2. Stress factors -- Part 3. Drought -- 4. Alleviation of drought and salinity stress by plant growth promoting rhizobacteria -- Part 5. Growth improvement and management of vegetable diseases by plant growth promoting rhizobacteria -- 1. Introduction -- 2. Rationale for using PGPR in the Management of Vegetables Diseases -- 3. How plant growth promoting rhizobacteria combat phytopathogen attack: A general perspective -- 4. Some Examples of Growth Promotion and Vegetable Disease Management by PGPR Wilt disease: A general perspective -- Part 6 -- Perspectives of Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria in Growth Enhancement and Sustainable Production of Tomato -- 1. Introduction -- 2. Nutritional composition of tomato fruit -- 3. Health benefits of lycopene -- 4. Rhizosphere and PGPR -- Part 7. Beneficial Role of Plant Growth Promoting Bacteria in Vegetable Production Under Abiotic Stress -- 1 Introduction -- 2. Impact of plant growth promoting bacteria on vegetables under stressed environment -- Part 8 -- Metal Toxicity to Certain Vegetables and Bioremediation of Metal Polluted Soils -- 1. Introduction -- 2. Heavy Metals: A brief account -- 3. Sources of Vegetable Contamination by Heavy Metals -- 4. Bioaccumulation of Heavy Metals: A Serious Concern -- Part 9. Recent Advances in Management Strategies of Vegetable Diseases -- 1. Introduction -- 2. Soil borne phytopatogenic diseases of vegetables: A general account -- 3. General effects of diseases on vegetable crop production -- 4. Management practices for control of vegetable diseases.

This book provides a comprehensive information on basic and applied concepts of microbesial strategies adopted for the improvement of vegetables grown in various production systems. The beneficial role of soil microbes including plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR), nitrogen fixers, and phosphate-solubilizing bacteria in the improvement of vegetables grown both in normal and contaminated soils is discussed. The role of PGPR in tomato production is dealt separately. The impact of heavy metals on different vegetables and abatement of metal toxicity following metal tolerant PGPR and their consequential impact on vegetables grown in metal polluted soil is discussed. Moreover, recent advances in the management of vegetable diseases employing PGPR are addressed. This volume is therefore of special interest to both academics, professionals and practitioners working in the field of vegetable farming/horticulture, microbiology and plant protection sciences.

Description based on publisher-supplied MARC data.