Arbuscular mycorrhizae influence raspberry growth and soil fertility under conventional and organic fertilization

Qianwen Lu; Rebecca Bunn; Erika Whitney; Yuanyuan Feng; Lisa Wasko DeVetter; Haiying Tao

doi:10.3389/fmicb.2023.1083319

Arbuscular mycorrhizae influence raspberry growth and soil fertility under conventional and organic fertilization

Front Microbiol. 2023 May 16:14:1083319. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1083319. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Qianwen Lu¹, Rebecca Bunn², Erika Whitney², Yuanyuan Feng³, Lisa Wasko DeVetter⁴, Haiying Tao¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, United States.
² Department of Environmental Sciences, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA, United States.
³ Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, Jiangsu Province Key Laboratory of Soil and Water Conservation and Ecological Restoration, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China.
⁴ Northwestern Washington Research and Extension Center, Washington State University, Mount Vernon, WA, United States.

Abstract

Introduction: Introducing beneficial soil biota such as arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) to agricultural systems may improve plant performance and soil fertility. However, whether bioinocula species composition affects plant growth and soil fertility, and whether fertilizer source influences AMF colonization have not been well characterized. The objectives of this research were to: (1) assess if AMF bioinocula of different species compositions improve raspberry (Rubus idaeus L.) performance and characteristics of soil fertility and (2) evaluate the impact of fertilizer source on AMF colonization.

Methods: Five bioinocula with different AMF species compositions and three fertilizer sources were applied to tissue culture raspberry transplants in a randomized complete block design with eight replicates. Plants were grown in a greenhouse for 14 weeks and plant growth, tissue nutrient concentrations, soil fertility, and AMF root colonization were measured.

Results: Shoot K and Zn concentrations as well as soil pH and K concentration increased in the Commercial Mix 1 treatment (Glomus, Gigaspora, and Paraglomus AMF species) compared to the non-inoculated control. RFI (raspberry field bioinoculum; uncharacterized AMF and other microbiota) increased soil organic matter (SOM), estimated nitrogen release (ENR), and soil copper (Cu) concentration compared to the non-inoculated control. Furthermore, plants receiving the Mix 1 or RFI treatments, which include more AMF species, had greater AMF root colonization than the remaining treatments. Plants receiving organic fertilizer had significantly greater AMF colonization than conventionally fertilized plants.

Conclusion: Taken together, our data indicate that coupling organic fertilizers and bioinocula that include diverse AMF species may enhance raspberry growth and soil fertility.

Keywords: Rubus idaeus L.; bioinoculum; colonization; fertilizer; hyphae; nutrient.