Coffee is an important, high-value crop because its roasted beans are used to produce popular beverages that are consumed worldwide. Coffee plantations exist in over 70 countries and constitute the main economic activity of approximately 125 million people. Currently, there is global concern regarding the excessive use of agrochemicals and pesticides in agriculture, including coffee crops. This situation has motivated researchers, administrators, and farmers to seek ecologically friendly alternatives to decrease the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. In the last decades, multiple studies of the rhizosphere, at the chemical, physical and biological levels, have improved our understanding of the importance of beneficial microorganisms to plant health and growth. This review aims to summarize the state of the use of plant growth-promoting microorganisms (PGPM) in coffee production, where the most extensively studied microorganisms are beneficial plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF). This review also contains information on PGPM, in regard to plantations at different latitudes, isolation techniques, mass multiplication, formulation methods, and the application of PGPM in nurseries, monoculture, and coffee agroforestry systems. Finally, this review focuses on relevant research performed during the last decade that can help us improve sustainable coffee production.

La caficultura es una actividad importante en Ecuador ya que se practica en todas las regiones del país, bajo diferentes pisos altitudinales, tanto en monocultivos como en sistemas agroforestales. La principal característica del café ecuatoriano es sus exquisitos aroma y sabor, reconocidos a nivel internacional. Al ser una bebida de alto consumo, su comercialización constituye una fuente de ingresos importante para todos los actores que intervienen en los diferentes eslabones de su cadena de producción. El objetivo de la presente revisión bibliográfica fue la recopilación de diferentes experiencias alrededor del mundo relacionadas con la aplicación de microorganismos benéficos en el cultivo del cafeto. Entre los microorganismos promotores del crecimiento vegetal (MPCV) podemos mencionar a los hongos micorrízicos arbusculares, el género Trichoderma spp. y rizobacterias promotoras del crecimiento vegetal. La literatura recopilada ha sido obtenida en el marco de un diseño experimental y análisis estadísticos rigurosos que validaron su publicación en artículos científicos o trabajos de tesis. Se analizó la información relevante publicada entre los años 2011 al 2022. Los resultados de las diferentes investigaciones sugieren un efecto positivo importante de la adición de MCPV en el desarrollo de las plantas a nivel de vivero y en cafetales asociados a sistemas agrícolas, agroecológicos y agroforestales. Se puede concluir que el uso de microorganismos en la caficultura constituye una alternativa sustentable para disminuir el uso de fertilizantes convencionales y pesticidas, conservando la fertilidad físico-química y promoviendo la diversidad microbiana del suelo.

Introduction. Coffee cultivation in Ecuador plays a crucial role in social, economic, environmental, and cultural aspects. In Loja province, Coffea arabica production is distinguished by its high quality, attributed to both the geographical conditions and the cultivation practices under agroforestry systems (AFS) with different management approaches. Objective. To assess the composition, diversity, and importance value of shade tree species, and to identify the microclimatic conditions within coffee agroforestry systems. Materials and methods. The research was conducted in three coffee-producing areas of Loja, Ecuador, using 20 × 30 m plots monitored from November 2017 to April 2019. The importance value index (IVI), Shannon-Wiener, and Simpson indices were calculated. Microclimatic variables, including ambient temperature (°C), relative humidity (%), wind speed (m s⁻¹), and canopy cover percentage (%), were recorded both inside and outside the AFS. Pearson correlation analysis was used to examine relationships between microclimatic variables, number of shade-providing individuals, and their importance value. Results. The coffee-growing areas exhibited significant arboreal diversity in terms of families, genera, and shade tree species, with Citrus and Inga as predominant genera. Microclimate modifications were evident, with temperature differences (ranging from −4.23 °C to 2.23 °C) and relative humidity variations (ranging from 0 % to 10.54 %) compared to full-sun exposed areas. Conclusions. Coffee AFS modify environmental conditions between the interior and exterior of the evaluated areas, with variations directly influenced by canopy species within the systems.

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) play a vital role in the restoration of tropical forests by enhancing soil fertility, facilitating plant establishment, and improving ecosystem resilience. This study presents a comprehensive bibliometric analysis of global scientific output on AMF in the context of ecological restoration, based on 3835 publications indexed in the Web of Science and Scopus databases from 2001 to 2024. An average annual growth rate of approximately 9.45% was observed, with contributions from 10,868 authors across 880 journals. The most prominent journals included Mycorrhiza (3.34%), New Phytologist (3.00%), and Applied Soil Ecology (2.79%). Thematically, dominant research areas encompassed soil–plant interactions, phytoremediation, biodiversity, and microbial ecology. Keyword co-occurrence analysis identified “arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi,” “diversity,” “soil,” and “plant growth” as core topics, while emerging topics such as rhizosphere interactions and responses to abiotic stress showed increasing prominence. Despite the expanding body of literature, key knowledge gaps remain, particularly concerning AMF–plant specificity, long-term restoration outcomes, and integration of microbial community dynamics. These findings offer critical insights into the development of AMF research and underscore its strategic importance in tropical forest restoration, providing a foundation for future studies and informing ecosystem management policies.

Soil biological properties are sensitive indicators of soil quality changes due to perturbations occurred under agricultural management. The effects of contrasting tillage, increasing nitrogen fertilization doses, and crop rotations [e.g., bean, maize, bean (BMB) and bean, amaranth, bean (BAB)] on soil physicochemical and biological properties in an Andean soil from Ecuadorian highlands were evaluated in this study. Acid phosphatase, β-Glucosidase, fluorescein diacetate hydrolysis, microbial biomass carbon (Cmic), soil basal respiration (BR), arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) spore density, total glomalin content (TGRSP), and soil physicochemical properties were analyzed. Conventional tillage (CT) and crop rotation showed significant effects on soil physicochemical and biological properties. Towards the final crop rotations, no-tillage (NT) promoted BR, TGRSP, and higher AMF spore density in both crop rotations; the Cmic kept stable along time in BMB and BAB, while BR doubled its value when compared to CT. Results indicated that the AMF spore density increased by 308% at the end of the BMB, and 461% at the end of the BAB, while TGRSP increased by 18% and 32% at the end of BMB and BAB, respectively. Biological traits demonstrated to be strongly associated to the organic matter accumulation originated from crop residues under the NT post-harvest which improved soil moisture, biological activity, and AMF interaction. The conservative soil management system has definitively improved general soil properties when compared to soil conditions under the intensive soil management system in this research.

Este trabajo se desarrolló, en respuesta a varios desafíos que enfrentan los agricultores de la parroquia rural Chuquiribamba, así como la inadecuada infraestructura de riego, la variabilidad climática, la falta de tecnologías y desconocimiento de técnicas adecuadas para la gestión del agua. Frente a esta situación, el objetivo principal fue determinar los requerimientos hídricos del cultivo de papa nativa (Solanum tuberosum) para contribuir al uso eficiente del agua. Inicialmente, se evaluó la consistencia de datos meteorológicos registrados en la estación meteorológica automática de la zona durante el año 2024. Posteriormente, se determinaron las necesidades de riego para dos periodos de siembra (marzo–agosto y septiembre-diciembre), calculando la evapotranspiración de referencia [ETo] mediante los métodos Hargreaves modificado y Penman-Monteith adoptando el segundo por su mayor precisión; asimismo, se estimó la evapotranspiración del cultivo [ETc] ajustando el coeficiente del cultivo [Kc] para variedades precoces considerando un ciclo vegetativo de 105 días. Los resultados no revelaron datos inconsistentes en las variables analizadas. La EToosciló entre 2,22 y 3 mm día⁻¹ con Penman-Monteith y los valores de Kc fueron: 0,45 (inicial), 0,75 (desarrollo), 1,15 (floración) y 0,85 (tuberización). En consecuencia, la ETc incrementó de 1,02 mm día⁻¹ en la etapa inicial, a 2,86 mm día⁻¹ en la etapa final en mayo-agosto, mientras que, en septiembre- diciembre la ETc inicialmente fue de 1,27 mm día⁻¹ alcanzando su máximo valor en la floración (2,87 mm día⁻¹). Las necesidades de riego alcanzaron sus valores máximos de 2,62 mm día⁻¹ (mayo-agosto) y 2,70 mm día⁻¹ en floración (septiembre-diciembre). En conclusión, la presente investigación aporta información valiosa para la planificación y sostenibilidad de los recursos hídricos en el cultivo de papa nativa.