Abstract: Compositions and methods are provided for benefiting plant growth. The compositions contain isolated bacterial or fungal strains having properties beneficial to plant growth and development that can provide beneficial growth effects when delivered in a liquid fertilizer in combination with a soil insecticide to plants, seeds, or the soil or other growth medium surrounding the plant or seed. The beneficial growth effects include one or a combination of improved seedling vigor, improved root development, improved plant health, increased plant mass, increased yield, improved appearance, improved resistance to osmotic stress, improved resistance to abiotic stresses, or improved resistance to plant pathogens. The isolated bacterial strains include those of the Bacillus species including species such as Bacillus pumilus, Bacillus licheniformis, and Bacillus subtilis.

Abstract: Compositions and methods include a new strain of Bacillus pumilus having plant growth promoting activity. In particular aspects, compositions containing the Bacillus pumilus strain can be applied alone or in combination with one or both of chemical agents or other microbial agents to benefit plant growth and to confer protection against and/or control plant disease.

Abstract: Compositions and methods include a new strain of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens having activity against plant pathogens. The compositions are useful for benefiting plant growth and/or conferring protection against a pathogenic infection when applied to plant foliage, flowers, fruits, bark, roots, seeds, callus tissue, grafts, cuttings, surrounding soil or growth medium, and soil or growth medium concomitant with sowing seed and planting callus tissue, grafts, and cuttings. The compositions containing the Bacillus amyloliquefaciens RTI472 strain can be applied alone or in combination with other microbial, biological, or chemical insecticides, fungicides, nematicides, bacteriocides, herbicides, plant extracts, plant growth regulators, or fertilizers.

Abstract: Compositions and methods include a new strain of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens having growth promoting activity and activity against plant pathogens. The compositions are useful for benefiting plant growth and/or conferring protection against a pathogenic infection when applied to plant foliage, flowers, fruits, bark, roots, seeds, callus tissue, grafts, cuttings, surrounding soil or growth medium, and soil or growth medium concomitant with sowing seed and planting callus tissue, grafts, and cuttings. The compositions containing the Bacillus amyloliquefaciens RTI301 strain can be applied alone or in combination with other microbial, biological, or chemical insecticides, fungicides, nematicides, bacteriocides, herbicides, plant extracts, plant growth regulators, and fertilizers.

Abstract: Compositions and methods are provided for a combination of a new strain of Bacillus amyloliquefaciens RTI301 and a new strain of Bacillus subtilis RTI477, the combination having growth promoting activity and activity against plant pathogens. The compositions containing the RTI301 and RTI477 strains are useful for benefiting plant growth and/or conferring protection against a pathogenic infection when applied to plant roots, seeds, callus tissue, grafts, and cuttings. Synergistic results are observed for the combination of the strains, and the combination of strains is useful to increase yield in crops including soybean and corn. The compositions containing the combination of strains can be applied alone or in combination with other microbial, biological, or chemical insecticides, fungicides, nematicides, bacteriocides, herbicides, plant extracts, plant growth regulators, and fertilizers.

Abstract: Compositions and methods for application to plants are provided for a new strain of Bacillus licheniformis RTI184 having plant growth promoting activity. Compositions and extracts of Bacillus licheniformis strains that include newly identified Fengycin-like and Dehydroxyfengycin-like cyclic lipopeptides designated as “Fengycin MB-Cit” and “Dehydroxyfengycin MB-Cit”, respectively, are also provided. In particular aspects, compositions containing the Bacillus licheniformis strain RTI184 can be applied alone or in combination with chemical agents or other microbial agents to benefit plant growth.

Abstract: Compositions are provided that are planting matrices containing spores of Bacillus spp. microorganisms for benefiting plant growth. The Bacillus spp. microorganisms include newly identified Bacillus licheniformis strain RTI184 deposited as ATCC No. PTA-121722 and Bacillus licheniformis CH200 deposited as Accession No. DSM 17236. Both Bacillus licheniformis strains were shown to produce previously unreported Fengycin-like and Dehydroxyfengycin-like cyclic lipopeptides that are not produced uniformly among strains of Bacillus licheniformis. The planting matrices provided include potting soils. The pH of the potting soils can range between 4 to 8. The growth benefit provided by the planting matrices can be exhibited by improved seedling vigor, improved root development, improved plant growth, improved plant health, increased yield, and improved plant appearance.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a novel species of Enterobacter, Enterobacter sp. 638, and to its use in connection, for example, with a method for increasing growth in a plant, increasing biomass in a plant, increasing fruit and/or seed productivity in a plant, increasing disease tolerance and/or resistance in a plant, and increasing drought tolerance and/or resistance in a plant, as compared to a control or wild-type plant grown under identical conditions without application of the inventive method or composition. The methods include applying an effective amount of a composition, which includes an isolated culture of Enterobacter sp. 638, to the plant.

Abstract: The invention concerns a method for the phytoremediation treatment of a medium contaminated with at least one element selected from the group consisting of (preferably water soluble and volatile) organic pollutants, heavy metals, radionuclides or a mixture thereof, comprising the step of cultivating upon the contaminated medium a plant associated with an endophytic microorganism able to improve the phytoremediation of the plant, to reduce phytotoxicity of chemicals. The invention further relates to methods for improving phytoremediation by directly modifying members of the endogenous endophytic community of a plant, via horizontal gene transfer. Another part of the invention relates to plants associated with such endophytes and/or plants with a modified endogenous endophytic community.

Abstract: A method for the phytoremediation treatment of a contaminated medium with at least one element selected from the group consisting of (preferably water soluble and volatile) organic pollutants, heavy metals, radionuclides or a mixture thereof, comprising the step of cultivating upon said contaminated medium a plant associated with an endophytic microorganism able to improve the phytoremediation of said plant, to reduce phytotoxicity of chemicals, and the step of recovering the elements present in said plant.

Abstract: A method for the phytoremediation treatment of a contaminated medium with at least one element selected from the group consisting of (preferably water soluble and volatile) organic pollutants, heavy metals, radionuclides or a mixture thereof, comprising the step of cultivating upon said contaminated medium a plant associated with an endophytic microorganism able to improve the phytoremediation of said plant, to reduce phytotoxicity of chemicals, and the step of recovering the elements present in said plant.

Abstract: This invention concerns a diagnostic system made of: a transformed microorganism capable of an increased reporter activity upon exposure to an environmental insult, said microorganism having a stress inducible promoter sequence being operatively linked to a reported encoding nucleic acid sequence encoding a reporter molecule resulting in a signal that can be assayed, and of a transformed microorganism having a constitutive and non stress inducible promoter sequence being operatively linked to a reporter encoding nucleic acid sequence encoding a reporter molecule resulting in a signal that can be assayed.