Conclusions and future
scenarios
Seed coating is a technique of covering seeds to improve plant
establishment and growth, and protect plants against biotic (e.g., pests
and diseases) and unfavorable environmental conditions (e.g., drought,
salinity, and extreme temperatures), thus providing a secure environment
for the next generations. Indeed, the seed coating process is a suitable
technology in sustainable agriculture that has received attention today.
Several experimental underlines about microbial seed coating as a
biotechnological reach to meliorate crop yield and quality against
environmental stress. However, large-scale application and broader use
of seed coating have been hindered by several parameters such as
survival and viability of microorganisms, selection of the ingredient
and accurate formulation, and production cost, which need to be
identified by more studies. Also, it is considered that the advantages
of microbial seed coating for its application in agriculture are not
always assured since it varies with plant species, conditional growth,
and experimental scale. However, nowadays using seed coating and
efficient PBM strains in agricultural production can provide a
commercial market.
The future of seed coating is dependent on formulations, which should be
adjusted according to the local conditions and agriculture practices
(such as the application of pesticides, fertilizers, and irrigation
management). Known PBM formulations obtained by native strains under
local conditions need to be further explored. The efficient formulations
improve not only the survival of PBM but also the growth and performance
of plants. Considering climate changes, the performance of PBM
demonstrates in reduction of biotic and abiotic stress. Therefore, the
application of PBM in seed coating is promising, and it has great
potential for agricultural practice in the future. PBM seed coating is
an efficient tool for sustainable agriculture that needs more expansion
and investiture to provide its widespread implementation and integration
in agricultural management strategies.
Conflict of Interest : The authors declare that they have no
conflict of interest.
Funding: This work is carried out at the College of Resources
and Environment, Southwest University, supported by the Fundamental
Research Funds for the Central Universities (No. SWU 020010), the
Natural Science Foundation of Chongqing (No. cstc2021jcyj-msxmX0827) and
Chongqing Returned Overseas Students’ Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Support Program (No. cx2021001).
Author contribution statement: Arezoo Paravar, and Ramin Piriconceived of the presented idea and wrote the draft manuscript
(specifically writing the initial draft (including substantive
translation) and designed the figures and graphical abstract.Hamidreza Balouchi and Ying Ma . supervised the project
and finalized the manuscript, and helped as an advisor the study
revising the manuscript critically for important intellectual content
and check the manuscript grammatically.