Endophytic communities of rhizobacteria and the strategies required to create yield enhancing associations with crops

The plant kingdom is colonized by a diverse array of endophytic bacteria wh ich form non-pathogenic relationships with their hosts. When beneficial, su ch associations can stimulate plant growth, increase disease resistance, im prove the plant's ability to withstand environmental stresses (e.g. drought ), or enhance N-2 fixation. Crop sequences can favour the build-up of advan tageous associations of bacterial endophyte populations leading to the deve lopment and maintenance of beneficial host-endophyte allelopathies. Utiliza tion of rhizobacteria in sustainable crop production systems will require s trategies to create and maintain beneficial bacterial populations within cr ops (endophytes) and as well in the soils surrounding those crops. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.