Abstract
The inoculation of coffee plants with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) may influence some of its physiological parameters, promoting benefits in the growth of newly planted coffee. The objective of this work was to evaluate the physiological responses of different cultivars of Coffea arabica inoculated with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. The experiment was conducted in a vegetation house in Diamantina, state Minas Gerais. The design was in randomizedblocks, in a 3 x 4 factorial scheme, with four replications. The factors were composed of coffee seedlings of Rubi (MG 1192), Mundo Novo (IAC 379-19) and Catuai Vermelho (IAC 144) cultivars, inoculated or not with FMA Rhizophagus clarus, Acaulospora colombiana and Mix composed by R. clarus and A. colombiana. At 150 days after transplantation, physiological characteristics such as photosynthetic rate, internal carbon concentration, stomatal conductance,transpiration rate, water use efficiency, internal carbon / atmospheric carbon ratio and percentage of mycorrhizal colonization were evaluated. AMF inoculation affected positively the physiology of coffee plants, increasing photosynthetic rate (A), stomatal conductance (Gs), transpiration, carbon consumed (ΔCO2), water use efficiency (EUA) and percentage of mycorrhizal colonization (%), as well as reducing the internal carbon concentration (Ci) for all combinations of AMF cultivars and species. The cultivar Rubi, when inoculated with R. clarus or Mix, obtained a higher percentage of colonization. The physiological activity of coffee plants is altered by symbiotic association, and their responses varied between AMF species and cultivars. Key words: Coffee; Mycorrhiza; Photosynthesis; Plant growth.
Highlights
Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are symbiotic associations that form with the roots of most plants, contributing to increased nutrient uptake, especially phosphorus (P), with consequent increase in plant growth Machineski et al (2018)
With the aim of obtaining references that can improve the performance of seedlings previously inoculated with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in the field, this study aimed to evaluate the physiological responses of coffee resulting from the combination of different cultivars and species of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi
The photosynthetic rate (A) of coffee plants was higher in AMF inoculated plants, regardless of inoculum and evaluated cultivars
Summary
Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are symbiotic associations that form with the roots of most plants, contributing to increased nutrient uptake, especially phosphorus (P), with consequent increase in plant growth Machineski et al (2018). Other important effects of AMFs are increased resistance of plants to attack by root system pathogens Sousa et al (2010), Mustafa et al (2016), Pinheiro, Souza and Coimbra (2014), and higher water absorption capacity Moreira et al (2018). AMF are found in about 90% of vascular plant species Heijden et al (2015), including coffee (Coffea arabica). Through this association, plants provide carbohydrates from photosynthesis to fungi, receiving in return greater absorption of water and nutrients, especially poorly mobile soil, such as P and Z, due to greater absorption surface by root system extension Zhao et al (2015). The effects of AMF are very complex and vary with the environment, plant species and fungal species Zhou et al (2015)
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