Green bean plants exhibiting resistance to Sclerotinia sclerotiorum are provided, together with kits and methods for controlling Sclerotinia sclerotiorum infection. Such methods include the application of fungicidal Bacillus subtilis strains to plants exhibiting resistance to Sclerotinia sclerotiorum.

The disclosure relates to methods for the screening, identification, and/or application of one or more microorganisms of use in imparting one or more beneficial properties to one or more plants.

The disclosure relates to methods for the screening, identification, and/or application of one or more microorganisms of use in imparting one or more beneficial properties to one or more plants.

The present invention relates to methods for enhancing at least one growth parameter of a leguminous plant via co-inoculation of a leguminous plant with at least one rhizobial microorganism together with at least one actinobacterial microorganism. In further aspects, the present invention also relates to leguminous plants co-inoculated with at least one rhizobial microorganism together with at least one actinobacterial microorganism, as well as specific actinobacterial strains and inoculant compositions which are useful in accordance with the present invention.

The present invention relates to methods for enhancing at least one growth parameter of a leguminous plant via co-inoculation of a leguminous plant with at least one rhizobial microorganism together with at least one actinobacterial microorganism. In further aspects, the present invention also relates to leguminous plants co-inoculated with at least one rhizobial microorganism together with at least one actinobacterial microorganism, as well as specific actinobacterial strains and inoculant compositions which are useful in accordance with the present invention.

The invention relates to a method to inhibit gene expression in bacteria, which is referred to here as Antibacterial Gene Silencing (AGS). In particular embodiments, the method is used to protect plants and animals against pathogenic bacteria by targeting pathogenicity factors and/or essential genes in a sequence-specific manner via small non-coding RNAs. The method can also be used to enhance beneficial effects and/or growth of symbiotic or commensal bacteria. The invention involves the exogenous delivery of small RNA entities onto bacteria, either in the form of RNA extracts or embedded into plant extracellular vesicles (EVs), so as to reduce bacterial growth, survival and/or pathogenicity. The invention also describes a method to identify in a rapid, reliable and cost-effective manner, small RNAs that possess antibacterial activity and that have the potential to be further developed as anti-infective agents. In addition, the latter method is instrumental to rapidly characterize any gene from any bacterial species.

The present invention relates to an endophyte strain isolated from a plant of the Poaceae family, wherein said endophyte is a strain of Stenoptrophomonas rhizophila which provides bioprotection and/or biofertilizer phenotypes to plants into which it is inoculated. The present invention also discloses plants infected with the endophyte and related methods.

The present invention relates to an endophyte strain isolated from a plant of the Poaceae family, wherein said endophyte is a strain of Stenoptrophomonas rhizophila which provides bioprotection and/or biofertilizer phenotypes to plants into which it is inoculated. The present invention also discloses plants infected with the endophyte and related methods.

The present invention relates to an endophyte strain isolated from a plant of the Poaceae family, wherein said endophyte is a strain of Xanthomonas sp. which provides bioprotection and/or biofertilizer phenotypes to plants into which it is inoculated. The present invention also discloses plants infected with the endophyte and related methods.

The present invention relates to new double stranded RNA (dsRNA) structures and their use in modulating flowering in plants. The present invention also relates to methods of modulating the time of plant flowering.