Soil phosphorus form affects the advantages that arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi confer on the invasive plant species, Solidago canadensis, over its congener

Abstract

Interactions between plants and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are strongly affected by soil phosphorus (P) availability. However, how P forms impact rhizosphere AMF diversity, community composition, and the co-occurrence network associated with native and invasive plants, and whether these changes in turn influence the invasiveness of alien species remain unclear. In this work, we performed a greenhouse experiment with the invasive species Solidago canadensis and its native congener S. decurrens to investigate how different forms of P altered the AMF community and evaluate how these changes were linked with the growth advantage of S. canadensis relative to S. decurrens. Plants were subjected to five different P treatments: no P addition (control), simple inorganic P (sodium dihydrogen phosphate, NaP), complex inorganic P (hydroxyapatite, CaP), simple organic P (adenosine monophosphate, AMP) and complex organic P (myo-inositol hexakisphosphate, PA). Overall, invasive S. canadensis grew larger than native S. decurrens across all P treatments, and this growth advantage was strengthened when these species were grown in CaP and AMP treatments. The two Solidago species harbored divergent AMF communities, and soil P treatments significantly shifted AMF community composition. In particular, the differences in AMF diversity, community composition, topological features and keystone taxa of the co-occurrence networks between S. canadensis and S. decurrens were amplified when the dominant form of soil P was altered. Despite significant correlations between AMF alpha diversity, community structure, co-occurrence network composition and plant performance, we found that alpha diversity and keystone taxa of the AMF co-occurrence networks were the primary factors influencing plant growth and the growth advantage of invasive S. canadensis between soil P treatments. These results suggest that AMF could confer invasive plants with greater advantages over native congeners, depending on the forms of P in the soil, and emphasize the important roles of multiple AMF traits in plant invasion.

Influence of plant species, mycorrhizal inoculant, and soil phosphorus level on arbuscular mycorrhizal communities in onion and carrot roots

“…The abundance of Claroideoglomus was greater in AMF communities colonizing the roots of carrots grown in high-vs. low-phosphorus soils. A recent study by Chen et al (2023) also reported the effects of soil phosphorous (adenosine monophosphate applied at 20 mg kg −1 soil) and host species on AMF communities detected in the roots of the perennial herbs Solidago canadensis L. and S. decurrens, compared to soil with no phosphorus applied in a greenhouse study. The application of phosphorus increased the relative abundance of Claroideoglomeraceae, and decreased Acaulosporaceae in AMF communities colonizing the roots of S. decurrens (Chen et al, 2023).…”

“…(2023) also reported the effects of soil phosphorous (adenosine monophosphate applied at 20 mg kg −1 soil) and host species on AMF communities detected in the roots of the perennial herbs Solidago canadensis L. and S. decurrens , compared to soil with no phosphorus applied in a greenhouse study. The application of phosphorus increased the relative abundance of Claroideoglomeraceae, and decreased Acaulosporaceae in AMF communities colonizing the roots of S. decurrens ( Chen et al., 2023 ). In contrast, application of phosphorus increased the relative abundance of Glomeraceae, and decreased the abundance of Diversisporaceae and Acaulosporaceae in S. canadensis ( Chen et al., 2023 ).…”

“…The application of phosphorus increased the relative abundance of Claroideoglomeraceae, and decreased Acaulosporaceae in AMF communities colonizing the roots of S. decurrens ( Chen et al., 2023 ). In contrast, application of phosphorus increased the relative abundance of Glomeraceae, and decreased the abundance of Diversisporaceae and Acaulosporaceae in S. canadensis ( Chen et al., 2023 ).…”

Spatial scale matters for predicting plant invasions along roads

“…For example, increased phosphorus content can reduce the competitive ability of invasive Solidago canadensis under high nitrogen conditions (Wan et al, 2018). On the other hand, depending on the phosphorus form, its availability in the soil can also play a key role in mediating interactions between goldenrods and soil microorganisms such as mycorrhizal fungi, thus enhancing goldenrod invasion (Chen et al, 2023).…”