Piriformospora indica Enhances Germination, Growth and Yield in Bitter Gourd (Momordica charantia L.): A Sustainable Approach

Piriformospora indica, a beneficial fungal root endophyte, has shown promising effects on growth promotion in addition to biotic and abiotic stress tolerance in several crops. The present study investigates the influence of P. indica on germination of seeds, seedling vigour, growth and yield in bitter gourd plants. Bitter gourd seeds and seedlings were subjected to colonization by P. indica, and grown in controlled and insect proof conditions, and different biometric and yield parameters were compared with the non-colonized control plants. In the presence of P. indica, the days taken for seed germination have been reduced to 3.6 days in contrast to 10.8 days in the control. It was also found that the seeds raised in P. indica-multiplied medium produced more vigorous seedlings of seedling vigour index 3061.81 compared to 1840.38 in the control seedlings at 15 days after germination (DAG). The endophytic colonisation of the fungus in bitter gourd plants promoted shoot and root growth, with enhanced shoot and root biomass of 67.66 and 95.46 per cent respectively over control plants. The fungus also modified root architecture with more secondary and tertiary roots. The colonised plants produced more leaves with higher leaf area (218.50 leaves with average leaf area of 94.19 cm2 at 60 DAG) compared to non-colonised plants (156.50 leaves with average area of 57.01 cm2 at 60 DAG). P. indica colonisation enhanced the yield in bitter gourd by 30.30 per cent. P. indica-colonised plants produced 23.10 fruits weighing 445.20 g fruit-1 having 44.10 seeds fruit-1, whereas the control plants produced only 16.10 fruits weighing 286.50 g fruit-1 with 30.5 seeds fruit-1. These findings suggest that, P. indica is a promising growth promoting endophyte that can positively influence seed germination, growth, development and yield of bitter gourd plants. Hence, P. indica can be used in bitter gourd production system as a sustainable agricultural practice.