A study published in the American Journal of Botany reveals an intriguing relationship between soil bacteria, plant nutrition, and the attractiveness of flowers to pollinators. Researchers found that bacteria that help fix nitrogen in plant roots can significantly boost the ability of certain plants to reproduce by making their flowers more appealing to bumblebees and other native pollinators.
The Nitrogen-Fixing Bacteria Connection
The study centered on a type of legume plant (Chamaecrista latistipula), an American herb. The reproductive success of this plant will depend on a specific pollinator, the bumblebee.
Scientists indeed confirmed that the soil bacteria known as rhizobia are critical to this process. Colonies of any of these bacteria live in the roots, fix nitrogen there, and receive sugary secretions from the plant. The nitrogen-fixing trait is particularly critical for C. lati stipula since it operates in nutrient-depleted soil.
Plants grown in soil with the nitrogen-fixing bacteria were actually nearly twice as tall and three times larger than they were when grown in nutrient-rich soil without the bacteria, as demonstrated by research conducted by researchers. This implied the plants gain a lot from these bacteria in terms of fixing nitrogen.
Boosting Flower Attractiveness
The researchers followed up by studying the flowers of C. latistipula plants to see if and how the nitrogen-fixing bacteria altered their traits, such as appearance and attractiveness to pollinators.
The researchers used a surface spectrophotometer to measure the reflections of light from the flowers. This in turn enabled them to evaluate the color contrasts as perceived by the bumblebees, which have different sensory mechanism of colour vision compared to us.
In these experiments, plants grown in nitrogen-poor soil together with the nitrogen-fixing bacteria were found to produce flowers whose anthers (the part of the flower that holds pollen) pattens attracted bumblebees. All of this hints that the plant and bacteria have a mutualistic bond free-lancing the growth of the said plant among other benefits, plus help to increase visual advertising for what could be attracting your next pollinator.
Conclusion
According to the researchers, this research reveals some of the extraordinary ways in which soil bacteria may shape plant reproductive success. The nitrogen-fixing bacteria helps grow the plants more vigorously by providing essential nitrogen to the roots producing luscious flowers that are more appealing bumblebees and other native pollinators. This mutually beneficial relationship emphasizes the intricate network of entities that makes for vibrant ecosystems, and the significance of leaving nature intact.
