Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) root colonization dynamics of Molinia caerulea (L.) Moench. in grasslands and post-industrial sites

Abstract

The aims of this studies were: (i) to examine the influence of heavy metal content (Zn, Cd, Pb, Fe, Cu) and other physico-chemical soil parameters on the level of root colonization of Molinia caerulea and (ii) to relate root colonisation parameters and soil variables to Molinia caerulea abundance in two contrasting habitats (grasslands and heavy metal contaminated sites).The sites differ significantly in terms of bio-available heavy metal contents, particularly Zn (34 times more than grasslands), soil texture, CaCO , organic matter (LOI%), Mg and nitrate content. PrincipalComponent Analysis showed the strong negative correlations between frequency of mycorrhization (F), arbuscular abundance (A%) and intensity of root cortex colonisation (M%) and concentration of bioavailable Zn and Cd. Moreover, no positive correlation between root colonization of Molinia and its abundance was found. The frequency of mycorrhization of root fragments (F%) was only slightly different between these two habitats, whereas the intensity of root cortex colonisation (M%) and relative arbuscular abundance (A%) were significantly lower (3 and 4 times respectively) on the postindustrial sites.The bioavailable Zn content in the substratum of post-industrial sites was strongly negatively correlated with species richness, Shannon diversity index and Evenness. In contrast, these relationshipswere not statistically significant in grasslands. Based on obtained results we could draw a model of possible relationships between root colonization of Molinia , HM content and Molinia abundance on grasslands and post-industrial sites. Bioavailable Zn content in the soil is a one of main factors influencing the Molinia community diversity. In the grasslands, lower amounts of bioavailable Zn, resulted in higher species richness (R) and species diversity (H) which in turn lead to higher root colonization. On the other hand, on the post-industrial sites, the elevated bioavailable Zn content strongly decreases the plant species richness (R) and species diversity (H) and this caused the decline in root colonization parameters. The low species richness on Zn-polluted sites allowedMolinia to reach higher abundance since the competition with other species is reduced.

The communities of ectomycorrhizal fungal species associated with Betula pendula Roth and Pinus sylvestris L. growing in heavy-metal contaminated soils

“…The availability of HMs to microorganisms and higher plant species depends to a large extent on the soil properties and in particular on soil pH (e.g. Bąba et al 2016). As the alkalinity of soil increases, the mobility and thus bioavailability of HMs decreases due to increased precipitation and displacement from the sorption complex by alkaline ions e. g. Ca and Mg (e.g.…”

Vegetation diversity on coal mine spoil heaps – how important is the texture of the soil substrate?

“…It has also been reported that the presence, and abundance of the finest particle size fractions in soils are connected with the accumulation of some heavy metals (Zn, Pb, Cd), and can be responsible for the development of mycorrhiza in sites with strong metal stress (Cabała et al 2004;Bąba et al 2016). Studies on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal root colonization dynamics of Molinia caerulea in grasslands and postindustrial sites have revealed that some of its mycorrhizal colonization parameters (mycorrhizal intensity, arbuscular richness) were negatively correlated with the clay and silt fractions in the soil and positively correlated with the percentage of sand fraction where higher species richness and diversity was recorded (Bąba et al 2016).…”

Urban and Industrial Habitats: How Important They Are for Ecosystem Services

“…All of which are the prerequisites for the establishment of permanent vegetation [67,[85][86][87][88].…”