Diversity of cultivable Azotobacter in the semi-arid alfisol receiving long-term organic and inorganic nutrient amendments

Monitoring the biological processes and microbial diversity is essential for sustaining the soil health for long-term productivity. In the present study, the impact of long-term nutrient management systems on changes in Azotobacter diversity of Indian semi-arid alfisol was assessed. Three soils, i.e., unfertilized control, soils amended with organic manures (OM), and with inorganic chemical fertilizers (IC) from century-old experimental fields were evaluated for Azotobacter diversity by Amplified Ribosomal DNA Restriction Analysis (ARDRA). Bray-Curtis's similarity index of the ARDRA data of the isolates was analyzed by non-metric multi-dimensional scaling and hierarchical cluster analysis. The results revealed that the long-term organically managed soil recorded significantly higher soil organic carbon, microbial biomass carbon, and total culturable bacterial counts, whereas the chemical fertilized and control soils remained unaffected. Though the Azotobacter population was significantly higher in OM soil than IC and control soils, the genetic diversity was unaffected due to long-term addition of either organic manures or inorganic chemical fertilizers. This result implies the importance of continuous addition of organic manures and also the optimal use of inorganic chemical fertilizers without disturbing the biological properties of the soil.