Enhancing Adaptation and Stress Tolerance in Urban Plants Through Plant Growth-Promoting Rhizobacteria (PGPR)

Urban plants are subjected to many biotic and abiotic stresses. These stresses compromise crop health and lead to substantial urban agricultural losses globally. To mitigate these challenges, researchers worldwide actively pursue innovative management strategies that integrate traditional and advanced plant breeding approaches. Urban environments, characterized by diverse stress factors, offer a fertile ground for investigating the interplay between microorganisms, plant nutrition, and plant growth and development. Among these, plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) emerge as crucial players in biotic and abiotic stress mitigation. PGPR enhances tolerance to pesticide and heavy metal contamination, temperature extremes, salinity, and drought by colonizing the rhizosphere and endo-rhizosphere of plants. The strategic introduction of stress-tolerant PGPR into the plant rhizosphere holds promise for enhancing plant development and boosting productivity in stress-prone urban environments. This chapter explores a range of stress-tolerant PGPRs derived from urban plant varieties, elucidating their impact on various crop types and their potential for promoting plant growth under adverse conditions.