Also important when selecting an inoculant is the survival and effectiveness of the Rhizobia. Survivability and effectiveness are more important than just the sheer number of bacteria in the product. That’s why you should compare performance results in the field between different products and not just look at the product guarantee. Ask your inoculant manufacturer or your inoculant retailer for performance results when selecting an inoculant.
Dr. Jeff Schoenau, Soil Science Dept, University of Saskatchewan It’s important and a good management practice to use commercial Rhizobium inoculants because those inoculants are strains that are selected for superior nitrogen-fixing abilities, and while your soil may have indigenous or native populations of those Rhizobium, it’s unlikely that those Rhizobium that infect the roots indeed have the superior nitrogen-fixing qualities that are found in the commercially available strains. And so for that reason, it’s good management practice to inoculate that pulse crop every time that you grow it.
