Premium
Mycorrhizal dependency of some endemic and endangered Hawaiian plant species
Author(s) -
Gemma J. N.,
Koske R. E.,
Habte M.
Publication year - 2002
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 - 10.3732/ajb.89.2.337
Subject(s) - biology , endangered species , botany , symbiosis , fabaceae , soil water , inoculation , horticulture , ecology , bacteria , genetics , habitat
Four endemic species of Hawaiian plants were tested for their response to inoculation with a Hawaiian isolate of Glomus aggregatum (an arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus [AMF]) when grown in a native soil with or without P added to achieve different soil‐solution P levels. The endangered species ( Sesbania tomentosa [Fabaceae] and Colubrina oppositifolia [Rhamnaceae]) and two nonendangered species ( Bidens sandvicensis and B. asymmetrica × sandvicensis [Asteraceae]) were tested. When soil‐solution P levels in greenhouse trials were similar to unfertilized field soils (e.g., 0.005–0.020 mg P/L), shoots of inoculated plants were 2.1 to 7.0 times larger than noninoculated plants. Leaf tissue P levels and root biomass in these species showed similar responses to inoculation. Mycorrhizal dependencies ranging from 44 to 88% were measured when plants were grown in low‐P soils and were −4–42% in soil with P levels typical of highly productive agricultural soils. A survey of P levels in a variety of native (nonagricultural) Hawaiian soils indicated the widespread occurrence of P‐limited sites (mean = 0.010 mg P/L, range = <0.001–0.030 mg P/L; N = 41). The terms “ecological mycorrhizal dependency” (EMD) and “agricultural mycorrhizal dependency” (AMD) are introduced to refine the concept of mycorrhizal dependency.