Citrus Carbohydrate Levels were Related to Irrigation Frequency but Not Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungal (AMF) Inoculum

Abstract

Sugar and starch concentrations in leaves and roots of Citrus volkameriana Tan and Pasq were measured in response to irrigation frequency and AMF inoculum. Non-mycorrhizal seedlings were treated with a soil inoculum from one of five different communities of AMF; two AMF communities from Arizona citrus orchard soils, and three communities from undisturbed desert soils. Plants were assigned to frequent (soil water tension > –0.01 MPa) or infrequent (soil water tension > –0.06 MPa) irrigation cycles and were container-grown in a glasshouse for 4 months before tissues were analyzed. Fungal inoculum source did not affect shoot or root carbohydrate levels. Plants grown under high irrigation frequency had increased leaf and root starch levels and increased root sugar levels compared with those under low irrigation frequencies. High irrigation frequency also increased shoot mass.