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Arbuscular mycorrhizal inoculation has similar benefits to fertilization for Thuja occidentalis L. seedling nutrition and growth on peat soil over a range of pH: implications for restoration

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Abstract

Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi are hypothesized to assist growth of northern white-cedar in acid peatlands, yet there is little direct evidence that they can provide sufficient resources, especially nitrogen (N), from unfertilized peat soils. Our objective was to determine mycorrhizal efficacy to support cedar growth and nutrient supply as part of a low-impact approach for ecological restoration of cedar in peatlands. We tested the effectiveness of AM inoculation in a greenhouse experiment in factorial combination with fertilization and liming. We also determined AM colonization rate in the different treatment combinations. We found that AM inoculation in the absence of fertilization significantly increased all growth parameters, phosphorus (P) concentrations, and N, P, and copper (Cu) content of the seedlings, and decreased N:P ratios. Fertilizer alone had a similar impact on plant growth and nutrient acquisition when compared to un-fertilized AM inoculation treatments. Liming alone was ineffective at increasing cedar growth and nutrient uptake. There were many interactions of AM inoculation with liming and fertilization. Specifically, the positive effect of AM inoculation on many growth and nutrition metrics was strongly reduced in the presence of fertilization, whereas the P benefit of mycorrhizas appeared to increase under liming. We conclude that addition of AM inoculation alone improved cedar growth and P acquisition, reducing the need for fertilizer and lime in peatlands. However, seedling N limitation might be a problem in strongly N-deficient peat soils.

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Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank the Directorate General of Resource, Science, Technology, and Higher Education, Ministry of Research, Technology, and Higher Education of the Republic of Indonesia for funding support “the Dikti-Funded Fulbright” scholarship to GA, the Fulbright Program in Jakarta (Indonesia) and Chicago/Midwest area (USA); Michigan Technological University and the USDA Forest Service Northern Research Station for support for GA; the Michigan Technological University Ecosystem Science Center for grant support to GA; University of Bengkulu; John Stanovick for statistical advice; Lynette Potvin, Joe Plowe, Karena Schmidt, Tia Scarpelli, Sara Kelso, Sarah Hartung, Brandon Stimac, and others for assistance in the field and the laboratory.

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  1. Guswarni Anwar

    Present address: Department of Forestry, University of Bengkulu, Bengkulu, Indonesia

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  1. School of Forest Resources and Environmental Science, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI, 49931, USA

    Guswarni Anwar & Rodney A. Chimner

  2. USDA Forest Service Northern Research Station, Houghton, MI, 49931, USA

    Erik A. Lilleskov

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Anwar, G., Lilleskov, E.A. & Chimner, R.A. Arbuscular mycorrhizal inoculation has similar benefits to fertilization for Thuja occidentalis L. seedling nutrition and growth on peat soil over a range of pH: implications for restoration. New Forests 51, 297–311 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11056-019-09732-x

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