Record ID No. |
2472 |
Author(s) |
Mala W J., Kumari I S., Sumanasena H A., Nanayakkara C M. , 2010 |
Affiliation |
Postgraduate Institute of Agriculture, University of Peradeniya, Peradeniya, Sri Lanka. |
Title |
Effective spore density of Glomus mosseae, arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM), for inoculation of rooted cuttings of black pepper (Piper nigrum Linn.) |
Source. Vol.(no):Page |
Tropical Agricultural Research. 21(2):189-197p. |
Categories |
Arbuscular Mycorrhiza |
Subjects |
Soil plant relations |
Sub-subjects |
Dependency |
Host |
Piper nigrum |
Organism |
Glomus mosseae |
Country |
Sri Lanka, Asia. |
Abstracts |
Introduction of mycorrhizal associations is a complementary alternative to improve fertilizer absorption efficiency of black pepper (Piper nigrum Linn.). Therefore, as an initial step, this experiment was carried out to select a suitable spore density of the Arbuscular Mycorrhize (AM) fungus Glomus mosseae for inoculation of rooted cuttings of black pepper in the nursery. Four mycorrhizal inoculum levels of G. mosseae, namely 25 g (T1), 75 g (T2), 150 g (T3) and 300 g (T4) were tested with a control (T5) after quantification of the initial spore density values. The respective quantities of inoculum were incorporated separately to standard size polythene bags (21 cm diameter x 13 cm height; gauge 150) filled with a sterilized standard potting mixture. A two nodal cutting of black pepper (local selection GK 49) was planted in each polythene bag and weeding and watering were done as required. Observation of darkly stained AM hyphae at the 2nd month after inoculation in all the inoculated treatments confirmed the success of inoculation. The heaviest infection of mycorrhizal fungi was observed in roots of T3 treatment showing root colonization, along with mycelium (100%), vesicles (94%), and spores (769/50 g) at the 6th month after inoculation. Significantly higher (p<0.05) shoot biomass (5.07 g) and root length (2740 cm) were observed at the 6th month in the plants in T2 than in the control (3.28 g and 1952 cm of roots). Incorporation of the AM at the rate of 75 g for one standard size polythene bag before planting rooted cuttings of black pepper was suitable to obtain good quality planting materials for field planting at the 6th month of growth in the nursery. |