Ecological studies of root-nodule bacteria introduced into field environments. 3. Persistence of Rhizobium trifolii in association with white cover at high elevations

Abstract

Eight strains of Rhizobium trifolii were tested for ability to persist in association with white clover (Trifolium repens) sown at three sites at different elevations in the Snowy Mountains region of New South Wales. The standard clover inoculant strain, TA1, persisted poorly. Five strains of Tasmanian origin (representing two distinct serotypes), all highly effective in nitrogen fixation in combination with white clover, were recovered from the soils at high frequency over a period of three years. A single-step technique of pelleting and seed inoculation was slightly but consistently superior to the more complicated method that has been employed routinely for inoculation of legume seed used in revegetation undertakings in the Snowy Mountains.