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MYCORRHIZAL AND CLIPPING EFFECTS ON ANDROPOGON GERARDII PHOTOSYNTHESIS
Author(s) -
Wallace L. L.,
Svejcar T.
Publication year - 1987
Publication title -
american journal of botany
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.218
H-Index - 151
eISSN - 1537-2197
pISSN - 0002-9122
DOI - 10.1002/j.1537-2197.1987.tb08725.x
Subject(s) - andropogon , biology , photosynthesis , stomatal conductance , fumigation , clipping (morphology) , agronomy , botany , greenhouse , horticulture , linguistics , philosophy
Mature Andropogon gerardii (Vitman) plants were placed in a 2 × 2 factorial treatment regime with clipping soil fumigation as main treatment effects. Plants were grown in a greenhouse using a Latin square design; pots were watered daily, and fertilized weekly with a low phosphorus nutrient solution. Photosynthesis and conductance were measured prior to and after a clipping which removed about 23% of the total leaf length of clipped plants. Fumigation reduced mycorrhizal colonization levels from 34.3 to 7.4%. Conductance was not affected by either treatment. Fumigated, clipped plants had significantly lower photosynthetic rates than their nonfumigated counterparts. However, there were no significant differences between fumigated and nonfumigated unclipped plants. The initial slope of the photosynthetic light response curve was significantly greater for the nonfumigated plants. Greater mycorrhizal development in nonfumigated plants appeared to be beneficial only when the host plants were under defoliation stress.