Low indigenous AM fungal activity would be a necessary but not sufficient condition for effective utilization of exogenous AM fungal inoculum to forage corn. Issue 1 (2nd January 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Deguchi, Shin; Yagi, Tetsuo; Ohtomo, Ryo
• Is Part Of: Soil science and plant nutrition. Volume 67:Issue 1(2021)
• Page Start: 50
• Page End: 56
• Publication Date: 2021-01-02
• Subjects: Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi -- infection potential -- inoculation effect -- inoculum -- soil sterilization; Soil science -- Periodicals; Plants -- Nutrition -- Periodicals; 631.4
• DOI: 10.1080/00380768.2020.1838234
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0038-0768

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi is expected to be utilized in low input agriculture for their function to supply nutrients and water to host plants. AM fungal inoculum has been provided, but it has been known that their effect is context dependent. To clarify the factors that determine the effect of AM fungal inoculation to forage corn, a pot experiment was conducted using different indigenous AM fungal infection potential that evaluated with a modified infection unit method. Because we hypothesized that low indigenous AM fungal infection potential would be required to obtain significant inoculation effect, we prepared soils with different indigenous AM fungal infection potential by mixing sterile and non-sterile soils with different ratio. AM fungal colonization of non-inoculated series were increased with increase of indigenous AM fungal infection potential. Inoculation effect to increase of AM fungal colonization to corn root was generally larger in soils with low indigenous AM fungal infection potential and with low phosphorus (P) level, however, the effect was not very prominent in the soil with moderate P levels. Plant growth and plant P uptake showed similar trend with AM fungal colonization, i.e., enhanced P uptake and increase in plant dry matter were obtained when change in AM fungal colonization was larger. Therefore, low indigenous AM fungal infection potential would be required but not a sufficient condition to obtain AM fungal inoculation effect to forage corn.