The objective of this work was to select bacterial isolates of the genus Bacillus in soil samples of West of the State of São Paulo and to assess the effect of their inoculation in corn growing in two soil conditions (natural and sterilized). 38 bacterial isolates characterized as belonging to the Bacillus genus were previously evaluated regarding their antagonism to phytopathogenic fungi and their production of plant hormones (auxines) in the laboratory. The corn plants were inoculated with 14 Bacillus isolates and grown in in a greenhouse for 50 days. The evaluations made during the conduction of the trial were: plant height, number of leaves and biomass dry weight. The bacterial isolates BRG-2, CAS-2, NGR-1, PNP-2, PRP-2 and TAC-2 were able to promote maize growth. Among the best isolates four were antagonist to phytopathogenic fungi. The AIA production was not the main feature of the best bacterial isolates that promoted the growth of corn.
Rhizobacterias; auxin; biological control; Zea mays
