Abstract:[Background] Endophytic bacteria isolated from plants can produce a variety of active substances, which can promote the growth and development of host plants. However, there are few reports on the isolation and plant growth-promoting effects of endophytic bacteria from the rare wild medicinal plant Huperzia serrata. [Objective] To isolate and identify the endophytic bacteria from H. serrata, and screen out the strains with a variety of plant growth-promoting effects, thus providing a reference for the development and utilization of the endophytic bacterial resources of this plant. [Methods] The endophytic bacteria from different tissue samples of H. serrata were isolated by different media, and then the strain identification and phylogenetic analysis were carried out according to the colony morphological characteristics and 16S rRNA sequence alignment. Finally, the plant growth-promoting effects of the strains, including nitrogen fixation, phosphorus solubilization, siderophore production, and indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) production, were measured. [Results] A total of 168 strains of endophytic bacteria were isolated from the roots, stems, and leaves of H. serrata, belonging to 16 genera, 6 families, 5 orders, 4 classes of 3 phyla. Bacillus (strains accounting for 55.95%) and Paenibacillus (19.05%) were the dominant genera. The number and species of endophytic bacteria isolated from different tissue samples were significantly different, following the trend of root>stem>leaf. Among the 168 strains, 95, 76, 23, and 81 strains were capable of fixing nitrogen, solubilizing phosphorus, producing siderophores, and producing IAA, respectively. [Conclusion] The endophytic bacteria isolated from H. serrata have high diversity and can promote plant growth, and their distribution presents obvious tissue specificity. A number of strains with excellent plant growth-promoting effects have been obtained, providing new strain materials for the development of microbial fertilizers and laying a foundation for the development and utilization of endophytic bacterial resources of H. serrata.