Cyanobacterial inoculation promotes enhanced clonal growth performance of the aquaticplant Salvinia auriculata.

Clonal plants, like Salvinia auriculata, are widespread and perform important ecosystem functions, influencing the structure and composition of the ecosystems in which they occur. Some cyanobacteria perform biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) and can affect plant growth, as nitrogen (N) is a limiting nutrient. Therefore, we carried out a greenhouse experiment with the inoculation of the cyanobacterial strain Desmonostoc (UFLA 12) to investigate whether heterocystous cyanobacteria favour individual growth and drives reproductive strategies (sexual reproduction and/or clonal growth) of S. auriculata. Salvinia auriculata ramets were grown in plastic pots under the following treatments: (D) Desmonostoc (UFLA 12) inoculum and (Co) control, in which cyanobacteria were absent. The Desmonostoc presence positively influenced the clonal growth of S. auriculata, and increased shoots number, plants fresh biomass, and shoot size. We conclude that the inoculation of Desmonostoc (UFLA 12) contributes to a more vigorous spread of S. auriculata since it enhanced clonal growth. In this sense, the role of Desmonostoc (UFLA 12) as a potential biofertilizer may serve as a tool to assist in understanding the excessive growth of S. auriculata in aquatic environments.