Short project description

Sainfoin (Onobrychis viciifolia) is a perennial grain legume with strong potential for low-input, climate-smart agriculture. Like other legumes, sainfoin relies on symbiotic rhizobia to fix atmospheric nitrogen, reducing the need for synthetic fertilizers and associated nitrogen losses. The effectiveness of this symbiosis is strongly controlled by soil microbial communities and soil physicochemical conditions.

Sainfoin is well adapted to marginal soils and low-input systems, where it can improve soil structure, reduce nitrate leaching, and support long-term soil fertility. However, its establishment and productivity in Denmark may be limited by poor compatibility with native soil rhizobia or by soil constraints affecting nodulation and nitrogen fixation.

This MSc project will focus on soil–plant–microbe interactions by testing rhizobia inoculation strategies for sainfoin under Danish conditions. The student will assess interactions between sainfoin roots, native soil rhizobia, and introduced inoculants, and quantify effects on nodulation, root development, and plant performance. The project offers hands-on experience in soil microbiology, rhizosphere processes, and nitrogen cycling, contributing to the development of biologically based nutrient management in Northern European soils.