BackgroundThe release of organic acids (OAs) is considered the main mechanism used by phosphate-solubilizing bacteria (PSB) to dissolve inorganic phosphate in soil. Nevertheless, little is known about the effect of individual OAs produced by a particular PSB in a soil–plant system. For these reasons, the present work aimed at investigating the effect ofEnterobactersp. strain 15S and the exogenous application of its OAs on (i) the solubilization of tricalcium phosphate (TCP), (ii) plant growth and (iii) P nutrition of cucumber. To this purpose two independent experiments have been performed.ResultsIn the first experiment, carried out in vitro, the phosphate solubilizing activity ofEnterobacter15S was associated with the release of citric, fumaric, ketoglutaric, malic, and oxalic acids. In the second experiment, cucumber plants were grown in a Leonard jar system consisting of a nutrient solution supplemented with the OAs previously identified inEnterobacter15S (jar’s base) and a substrate supplemented with the insoluble TCP where cucumber plants were grown (jar’s top). The use ofEnterobacter15S and its secreted OAs proved to be efficient in the in situ TCP solubilization. In particular, the enhancement of the morpho-physiological traits of P-starved cucumber plants was evident when treated withEnterobacter15S, oxalate, or citrate. The highest accumulation of P in roots and shoots induced by such treatments further corroborated this hypothesis.ConclusionIn our study, the results presented suggest that organic acids released byEnterobacter15S as well as the bacterium itself can enhance the P-acquisition by cucumber plants.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12866-023-02918-6.