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This three-year field study in Poland evaluated whether multi-species microbial inoculants could enhance turfgrass quality and nutrient uptake while reducing reliance on conventional fertilizers. Results demonstrated that all microbial treatments improved lawn performance compared to the untreated control, with specific formulations showing superior benefits in plant density, color, disease resistance, and nutrient concentration.

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Abstract

Sustainable care of urban lawns requires methods that maintain high turf quality while reducing the use of chemical fertilizers. The objective of this three-year field study was to evaluate whether microbial inoculants can complement or partially substitute conventional fertilization (65–190 kg N·ha−1, 33–35.2 kg P·ha−1, and 124.5 kg K·ha−1) required to maintain high turf quality in an intensively managed lawn system. The experiment was conducted in Poland on a degraded chernozem, classified as Haplic Phaeozem. A standard mixture of perennial ryegrass and fescue was evaluated under four treatments: (1) untreated control; three commercial microbial formulations: (2) StymGrass P+K, containing nutrient-solubilizing Bacillus spp.; (3) BioVitaGrass, combining Bacillus spp. with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF); and (4) NitroGrass, containing nitrogen-fixing Azotobacter spp. with Bacillus spp. All microbial treatments improved lawn quality compared with the untreated control. Lawns receiving BioVitaGrass or NitroGrass showed the strongest responses, including denser plant cover, greener and finer leaves, reduced disease symptoms, and increased concentrations of nutrients in the plant tissue. StymGrass P+K produced smaller but still positive effects. Measurements of plant conditions, such as leaf greenness and canopy development, also indicated improved photosynthetic activity in inoculated plots. These results support the role of plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in nutrient mobilization, root stimulation, and stress resilience. Although most evidence comes from crops, this study provides novel field-based confirmation of multi-functional microbial inoculant efficacy in turfgrass under this study’s conditions.

Key findings

  • All microbial inoculant treatments significantly improved turfgrass quality compared to the untreated control.
  • BioVitaGrass (Bacillus spp. + AMF) and NitroGrass (Azotobacter spp. + Bacillus spp.) exhibited the strongest positive responses in plant cover density and leaf color.
  • Microbial treatments successfully increased nutrient concentrations within the plant tissue, supporting the potential for partial substitution of chemical fertilizers.

Keywords

Microbial inoculantAgronomyLawnNutrientAzotobacterTemperate climate

Identifiers

DOI
10.3390/agronomy16050502
Journal
Agronomy
Year
2026