Isolation and characterization of mung bean (Vigna radiata L.) rhizobia in Myanmar

We collected soil samples from six major mung bean cropping regions in Myanmar: Sagaing, Mandalay, Nay Pyi Taw, and Magway in the tropical savanna climate zone and Bago and Yangon in the tropical monsoon climate zone. All fields grew mung bean for at least 5 years and had no history of rhizobial inoculation. Mung bean 'Yezin-11', a popular cultivar in Myanmar, was inoculated with soil suspensions. From the nodules formed on the roots, we isolated 55 rhizobial strains. Identification of the isolates revealed the dominant species of indigenous rhizobia in each region. We identified 53 Bradyrhizobium strains and 2 Ensifer strains. Bradyrhizobium yuanmingense was dominant in the tropical savanna zone and Bradyrhizobium sp. (B. liaoningense or B. diversitatis) and B. centrosematis were dominant in the tropical monsoon zone. Principal component analysis indicates that the dominance of B. yuanmingense in the tropical savanna zone might be due to high concentration of NO3-N and P2O5 in the soil. It also indicates that the dominance of B. centrosematis in the tropical monsoon zone might be caused by drastically low pH and high concentration of NH4 in the soil. Bradyrhizobium centrosematis YGN-M9, B. yuanmingense SGG-M3, and Bradyrhizobium sp. BGO-M5 significantly increased nodulation (nodule number and nodule dry weight), acetylene reduction activity, and shoot dry weight, respectively, relative to Ensifer terangae MDY-M6. Co-inoculation with these three strains increased nodulation significantly compared with single inoculation of BGO-M5. The characterization of mung bean rhizobia and selection of microbial inoculant candidates will be useful for the development of microbial inoculants in Myanmar.