Record ID No. |
3551 |
Author(s) |
Kahiluoto, H., Ketoja, E., Vestberg, M. , 2012 |
Affiliation |
MTT Agrifood Research Finland, Plant Production Research, Lönnrotinkatu 5, 50100 Mikkeli, Finland, e-mail: helena.kahiluoto@mtt.fi |
Title |
Plant-available P supply is not the main factor determining the benefit from arbuscular mycorrhiza to crop P nutrition and growth in contrasting cropping systems |
Source. Vol.(no):Page |
Plant and Soil, 350 (1-2): 85-98p. |
Categories |
Arbuscular Mycorrhiza |
Subjects |
Soil plant relations |
Sub-subjects |
Cropping effect |
Host |
Plants |
Organism |
AMF |
Country |
Finland, Europe |
Abstracts |
Field studies have indicated that plant-available P supply is the main determinant of the performance of arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM) of crops. Direct evidence is, however, weak. Our aim was to test the hypothesis that plant-available P is the main factor determining the benefit from AM to plant P uptake and growth in contrasting cropping systems. We compared a conventional system with full and half fertilisation rates and a low-input system with and without composting of residues. After 15 years, plant P response functions, with and without AM, were determined in a bioassay. At equal plant availability of P, the benefits from AM were similar to those at the P status in the field: The benefits were greater in the low-input system than in the conventional system, irrespective of the fertilisation rate but clearest with composting. This shows that differences between the systems in the benefit from AM to a particular crop genotype are not mainly due to differences in plant-available P. The results suggest also that differences in P pools, in growth-limiting factors such as N supply and in phytotoxicity to AMF hyphae play roles in determining the benefit. It is not likely that differences in AMF communities are important. |