Microbial Solutions for Resilient Dryland Agroecosystems

Dryland agroecosystems, which cover approximately 40% of the world’s terrestrial regions and support over two billion people, are highly vulnerable to climate variability, land degradation, and soil infertility. These ecosystems are often characterized by low soil organic matter, limited water availability, and poor nutrient retention, all of which hinder sustainable crop production and threaten food security. In recent years, the role of beneficial microbial inoculants has gained recognition for their capacity to enhance plant resilience, nutrient uptake, and stress tolerance under harsh conditions. These microbes not only influence plant physiology and soil health but also drive crucial ecological processes that improve the sustainability of dryland agriculture.

This Research Topic aims to address the challenges of improving productivity and sustainability in dryland agroecosystems by leveraging the potential of beneficial microbes. Despite evidence supporting the positive role of microbes in improving crop performance under stress, the practical application and integration of these microbial technologies remain limited. Our goal is to explore innovative approaches, mechanisms, and practical strategies for utilizing microbial inoculants to build resilience in dryland farming systems. Contributions are expected to focus on how microbial interactions with plants and soils can be harnessed to mitigate abiotic stresses, improve nutrient cycling, and restore soil health.

We invite articles that focus on, but are not limited to, the following themes:
• Microbial inoculants in dryland crop production: role of beneficial microbes in promoting plant growth and stress tolerance.
• Microbe-mediated drought resilience: mechanisms through which microbial inoculants enhance plant physiological, biochemical, and molecular responses under abiotic stress.
• Soil health and microbial ecology: impact of microbial inoculants on soil microbial diversity, extracellular enzyme activity, organic matter turnover, and soil structure.
• Rhizosphere engineering: designing and managing rhizosphere microbial communities to support dryland crop productivity.
• Microbial consortia and synergistic effects: exploration of multi-strain or multi-species inoculants for improving soil-plant-microbe interactions in drylands.
• Field trials and case studies: long-term studies on the application of microbial inoculants in various dryland agroecological zones and their influence on crop yield and ecosystem services.

Please note that Microbiotechnology does not consider descriptive studies that are solely based on amplicon (e.g., 16S rRNA) profiles, unless they are accompanied by a clear hypothesis and experimentation and provide insight into the microbiological system or process being studied.

Keywords: drylands, stress management, microbial inoculation, agronomic crops, physiology

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.