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Root growth and presence of Rhizophagus irregularis distinctly alter substrate hydraulic properties in a model system with Medicago truncatula

Root growth and presence of Rhizophagus irregularis distinctly alter substrate hydraulic properties in a model system with Medicago truncatula

Authors :
Anja Müller
Michael Bitterlich
Richard Pauwels
Jan Graefe
Jan Jansa
David Püschel
Steffen Kolb
Source :
Plant and Soil. 457:131-151
Publication Year :
2020
Publisher :
Springer Science and Business Media LLC, 2020.

Abstract

AimWe investigated how substrate hydraulic properties respond to the presence of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) in root-containing and root-free substrate zones in aMedicago truncatula-Rhizophagus irregularismodel system.MethodsBefore planting, two compartments constructed from standard soil sampling cores (250 cm3) were implanted into non-mycorrhizal and mycorrhizal pots containing a sand-zeolite-soil mix. One compartment allowed root penetration (1 mm mesh cover) and the other only hyphal ingrowth (42 μm mesh cover). After eight weeks of growth under maintenance of moist conditions, the cores were subjected to water retention measurements. Additionally, we measured water retention of bare substrates before and after drying events to check for successful maintenance of moist conditions in pots.ResultsDrying of bare substrates decreased water retention, but planting at least sustained it. The parameters of water retention models responded linearly to root morphological traits across mycorrhizal and non-mycorrhizal substrates. Hyphae-only colonization comparatively affected the course of water retention in ways that suggest increased pore space heterogeneity while maintaining water storage capacity of substrates.ConclusionsHence, water contents corresponded to different substrate matric potentials in non-mycorrhizal and mycorrhizal pots. We conclude that changes to water retention in AMF colonized substrates can contribute to a widely observed phenomenon, i.e. that mycorrhizal plants differ in their moisture stress response from non-mycorrhizal plants.

Details

ISSN :
15735036 and 0032079X
Volume :
457
Database :
OpenAIRE
Journal :
Plant and Soil
Accession number :
edsair.doi...........fa7d24c28f6f30f6f3b8515498bc3c2d
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-020-04723-w