Background: Stenotrophomonas maltophilia is a plant growth-promoter. This bacterium is also implicated in human
diseases. Thus, after the use of this bacterium in agriculture, the safety of the final products has to be verified. Due to
the ubiquitous presence of S. maltophilia in soil, in this study a massive contamination was simulated to evaluate the
growth and safety of Raphanus sativus L..
Results: Different inoculums and soil treatment conditions were tested. Soils were analysed weekly and the radishes
at harvest for their microbial loads and presence/persistence of S. maltophilia LMG 6606. The concentration of the
bacterium added in the different trials decreased during the first week, but increased thereafter and determined a
significant increase of growth parameters of radishes.
Conclusions: The addition of S. maltophilia LMG 6606 to non-autoclaved soil enhanced the productivity of radishes.
The bacterium did not internalize in the hypocotyls, but colonized the external surface ensuring the safety of the
products. Thus, a sanitizing bath of hypocotyls before consumption is necessary
