Abstract
In order to recognize interactions between alien vascular plants and soil microorganisms and thus better understand the mechanisms of plant invasions, we examined the mycorrhizal status, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) colonization rate, arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM) morphology and presence of fungal root endophytes in 37 non-native species in Central Europe. We also studied the AMF diversity and chemical properties of soils from under these species. The plant and soil materials were collected in southern Poland. We found that 35 of the species formed AM and their mycorrhizal status depended on species identity. Thirty-three taxa had AM of Arum-type alone. Lycopersicon esculentum showed intermediate AM morphology and Eragrostis albensis developed both Arum and Paris. The mycelia of dark septate endophytes (DSE) were observed in 32 of the species, while sporangia of Olpidium spp. were found in the roots of 10. Thirteen common and worldwide occurring AMF species as well as three unidentified spore morphotypes were isolated from trap cultures established with the soils from under the plant species. Claroideoglomus claroideum, Funneliformis mosseae and Septoglomus constrictum were found the most frequently. The presence of root-inhabiting fungi and the intensity of their colonization were not correlated with soil chemical properties, plant invasion status, their local abundance and habitat type. No relationships were also found between the presence of AMF, DSE and Olpidium spp. These suggest that other edaphic conditions, plant and fungal species identity or the abundance of these fungi in soils might have an impact on the occurrence and intensity of fungal root colonization in the plants under study.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s13199-015-0324-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Highlights
Alien plant invasions can be a serious danger to native ecosystems and human health and their elimination may well give rise to financial losses (Pimentel 2002)
We identified arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) colonization and arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM) morphology on the basis of aseptate hyphae growing (1) intracellularly, forming arbuscules terminally in the cortical cells; (2) intracellularly with arbuscules developed on coils in the cortical cells or (3) forming intermediate types (Dickson 2004)
Arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM) was found in 35 out of the 37 alien plant species under study; it was not observed in Reynoutria japonica and Typha laxmannii
Summary
Alien plant invasions can be a serious danger to native ecosystems and human health and their elimination may well give rise to financial losses (Pimentel 2002). Recent studies have demonstrated that the performance of non-native plants might be influenced by their mutualistic interactions with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) (Richardson et al 2000; Shah et al 2009a). It has been found that mycorrhizal fungi improve phosphorus uptake and, as a consequence, the competitiveness of two plants invasive to grassland in North America, namely Centaurea maculosa and Centaurea diffusa (Zabinski et al 2002). Experiments conducted by Lee et al (2014) have shown that the symbiosis of invasive Microstegium vimineum with AMF may enhance its growth and phosphorus content. Symbiosis with AMF may decrease plant performance as a result of the high carbon cost and, as a consequence, it reduces the competitive capabilities of plants under certain conditions (Walling and Zabiński 2006; Shah et al 2009a)
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