Soil fertility has direct implications on the agricultural production scenarios of a region. Surface soil samples at 1 km grid were collected to assess the fertility status of Lakhimpur district (Assam) in North East India. Fertility parameters like soil organic carbon, available nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, iron, manganese, zinc and copper were determined using standard analytical procedure.

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The UK has an estimated 100 harvest left before soils become too degraded to grow crops, one study shows. Photograph: Tim Gainey/Alamy

Inorganic phosphorus (P)-solubilizing bacteria (IPSB) and organic P-mineralizing bacteria (OPMB) were isolated from bacteria that were first extracted from the rhizosphere soil of a natural wetland and then grown on either tricalcium phosphate or lecithin medium. The solubilizing of inorganic P was the major contribution to P availability, since the isolated bacteria released much more available P from inorganic tricalcium phosphate than lecithin.

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