Soil Reclamation through Microbial Strategies: Evaluating Anion Behavior across Various Salinity Levels

Abstract

A laboratory incubation experiment was conducted to assess the influence of microbial inoculants on bicarbonate (HCO3-), chloride (Cl⁻), and sulphate (SO42-) concentrations in saline soils with electrical conductivity (EC) levels of 4.03, 5.01, and 6.02 dS m-1 under 100% field capacity (FC) for 30, 60 and 90 days. At 90 days after incubation (DAI), the application of halotolerant microbial inoculants exhibited significant reductions in soil anions concentration across varying salinity levels. The treatment with CSR-GROW-SURE at 3 L ha-1 resulted in the percentage reduction of HCO3- (10.20, 7.96 and 11.78 %), Cl⁻ (10.25, 8.05 and 10.59 %), and SO42- (10.22, 8.05 and 6.60 %) over control in soils with EC levels of 4.03, 5.01, and 6.02 dS m-1, respectively. The results were on par with treatment TNAU culture applied at 3 L ha-1, with percentage reduction of (9.91, 7.96 and 11.53 %) for HCO3-, (9.98, 7.87 and 10.33 %) for Cl⁻ and and (10.00, 7.72 and 6.45%) for SO42- in 4.03, 5.01, and 6.03 dS m-1 of saline soils Compared to the treatment control respectively. These findings suggest that prolonged incubation (90 DAI) combined with higher inoculant dosage (3 L ha-1) effectively modulates the accumulation of anions in saline soils. The similar performance of both microbial formulations indicates their potential in reducing anion toxicity and improving soil chemical properties under saline conditions.