Pros and Cons of Interactions Between Crops and Beneficial Microbes

Microbe–plant interactions are a cornerstone of sustainable agriculture, offering eco-friendly alternatives to synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. These benefits are not cost-free for the host, and maintaining mutualisms requires investments of carbon, ATP, macro- and micro-nutrients, and water. Many associations involve the formation of specialized symbiotic tissues and depend on extensive signaling and immune modulation to sustain compatibility. In this review, we synthesize current knowledge on plant–microbe interactions that enhance crop performance and evaluate the accompanying costs, framing them as a physiological and ecological trade-off.