Mycelium In Soil Research Articles

Effect of AMF Inoculation on Reducing Excessive Fertilizer Use.

Excessive use of chemical fertilizer is a global concern. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are considered a potential solution due to their symbiotic association with crops. This study assessed AMF's effects on maize yield, fertilizer efficiency, plant traits, and soil nutrients under different reduced-fertilizer regimes in medium-low fertility fields. We found that phosphorus supplementation after a 30% fertilizer reduction enhanced AMF's positive impact on grain yield, increasing it by 3.47% with pure chemical fertilizers and 6.65% with mixed fertilizers. The AMF inoculation did not significantly affect the nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer use efficiency, but significantly increased root colonization and soil mycelium density. Mixed fertilizer treatments with phosphorus supplementation after fertilizer reduction showed greater mycorrhizal effects on plant traits and soil nutrient contents compared to chemical fertilizer treatments. This study highlights that AMF inoculation, closely linked to fertilization regimes, can effectively reduce fertilizer use while sustaining or enhancing maize yields.

Growth Performance and Osmolyte Regulation of Drought-Stressed Walnut Plants Are Improved by Mycorrhiza

This study aims to evaluate whether a selected arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus, Diversispora spurca, improves growth in drought-stressed walnut (Juglans regia L. cv. Qingxiang) plants and whether this improvement is associated with changes in osmolyte (fructose, glucose, sucrose, soluble protein, proline, and betaine) levels. After 60 days of soil drought treatment (50% of maximum field water-holding capacity), root D. spurca colonization rate and soil mycelium length decreased by 13.57% and 64.03%, respectively. Soil drought also inhibited the growth performance of aboveground (stem diameter, leaf number, leaf biomass, and stem biomass) and underground (root projected area, surface area, and average diameter) parts, with uninoculated plants showing a stronger inhibition than D. spurca-inoculated plants. D. spurca significantly increased these growth variables, along with aboveground part variables and root areas being more prominent under drought stress versus non-stress conditions. Although drought treatment suppressed the chlorophyll index and nitrogen balance index in leaves, mycorrhizal inoculation significantly increased these indices. Walnut plants were able to actively increase leaf fructose, glucose, sucrose, betaine, and proline levels under such drought stress. Inoculation of D. spurca also significantly increased leaf fructose, glucose, sucrose, betaine, proline, and soluble protein levels under drought stress and non-stress, with the increasing trend in betaine and soluble protein being higher under drought stress versus non-stress. Drought stress dramatically raised leaf hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) levels in both inoculated and uninoculated plants, while mycorrhizal plants presented significantly lower H2O2 levels, with the decreasing trend higher under drought stress versus non-stress. In conclusion, D. spurca symbiosis can increase the growth of drought-stressed walnut plants, associated with increased osmolyte levels and decreased H2O2 levels.

An improved method for extraction of soil fungal mycelium

Fungal mycelium is a major component of the soil microbiome. The soil hyphosphere represents a complex and dynamic niche for specific microorganisms, where multitrophic interactions occur, affecting ecosystem processes. However, extracting fungal mycelium from the soil to enable its taxonomical, chemical, and structural characterisation is challenging in the absence of a fast, efficient, and low-cost procedure. In this study, an old method (Bingle and Paul 1985), based on successive soil wet filtrations and density gradient centrifugation, was improved and tested in three different soil types (silty clay, silty clay loam, and loamy sand). The improved method reduced the number of filtrations by about five times and the centrifugation time from 40 min to 1 min. It avoided using any chemical substance which may impair further chemical analyses or DNA isolation and amplification. The method efficiency was about 50 % in the clay and 23 % in the sandy soils. However, a pre-step consisting of removing the fine-root fragments and other debris under the stereomicroscope may increase the method efficiency to more than 65 %, independent of the soil type.•A simple, efficient, and low-cost method suitable for extracting soil mycelium from a large number of samples.•The protocol includes successive soil wet filtrations and sucrose gradient centrifugation.•The method efficiency increases if the fine-root fragments and other debris are previously removed from the soil.

Mycorrhizal cucumber with Diversispora versiformis has active heat stress tolerance by up-regulating expression of both CsHsp70s and CsPIPs genes

Cucumbers are frequently subjected to heat stress (HS) during the summer, which severely limits their growth and fruit yield and quality. Soil arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) can enhance the abiotic stress tolerance of host plants, but it is unclear whether and how soil arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) enhance the HS tolerance of cucumber. This work aimed to assess the effects of an arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus, Diversispora versiformis, on plant growth, leaf gas exchange, and expressions of plasma membrane intrinsic proteins (PIPs) and heat shock protein 70 (Hsp70) genes in roots of cucumber under HS (38 °C/30 °C, day/night temperature, 16 h/8 h) and suitable temperature (ST) (25 °C/18 °C, day/night temperature, 16 h/8 h) conditions. The HS treatment significantly decreased root mycorrhizal colonization and soil mycelium length by 0.26- and 0.55-fold, respectively, compared with the ST treatment. The biomass inhibition of cucumber by HS versus ST was more pronounced in uninoculated plants than inoculated plants. Inoculation with D. versiformis, however, significantly increased cucumber biomass and leaf gas exchange under both ST and HS conditions when compared to the uninoculated treatment. The HS treatment had almost no effect on or down-regulated the expression of CsHsp70s and CsPIPs genes in uninoculated plants, while most CsHsp70s and CsPIPs gene expressions were up-regulated in inoculated plants under HS versus ST conditions, suggesting the active heat resistance of mycorrhizal plants. Additionally, under ST conditions, D. versiformis up-regulated CsHsp70–11, CsPIP1;2, and CsPIP2;6 expressions. Under HS conditions, D. versiformis increased the expression of 11 of 12 CsHsp70s by 1.17‒6.14 folds as well as 12 of 14 CsPIPs by 1.82‒144.43 folds, with CsPIP1.5 and CsPIP2;7 up-regulated up to 144.43- and 82.46-fold, respectively. It is concluded that D. versiformis-inoculated cucumbers exhibited higher heat tolerance than uninoculated plants, associated with up-regulated expression of most CsHsp70s and CsPIPs genes.

Aromatic Plants and Their Associated Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi Outcompete Tuber melanosporum in Compatibility Assays with Truffle-Oaks.

The high value of black truffle recompenses the slow growth of the fungus when established in the field. Adding a secondary crop, such as medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs), could further enhance the sustainability of truffle production agro-forest systems. The dual cultures of ectomycorrhizal truffle-oak seedlings and MAPs (lavender, thyme, and sage) previously inoculated and non-inoculated with native arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), were established to evaluate plant-fungi relationships. After 12 months in a shadehouse, plants' growth, mycorrhizal colonization, and extraradical soil mycelium (both of Tuber melanosporum and AMF) were measured. Overall, truffle-oaks' growth was negatively affected by the presence of MAPs, especially when inoculated with AMF. In turn, the presence of truffle-oaks barely affected the co-cultured MAPs, and only lavenders showed a significant growth reduction. All AMF-inoculated MAPs showed higher shoot and root biomass than non-inoculated ones. Compared to truffle-oaks growing alone, the presence of co-cultured MAPs, especially when they were AMF-inoculated, significantly decreased both the ectomycorrhizas and soil mycelium of T. melanosporum. These results reveal the strong competition between AMF and T. melanosporum and warn about the need for the protection of intercropping plants and their associated symbiotic fungi to avoid reciprocal counterproductive effects in mixed truffle-oak-AMF-MAP plantations.

Decline in Morel Production upon Continuous Cropping Is Related to Changes in Soil Mycobiome.

The black morel Morchella sextelata (Morchellaceae, Pezizales) is a valuable edible mushroom that can be cultivated on a large scale, but a severe yield decline is observed during continuous cropping. The effect of long-term cropping on soil-borne diseases and the dysbiosis of the microbiome and how these biotic factors affect the morel yield are not well understood. To help fill this knowledge gap, we designed an indoor experiment to investigate the influence of black morel cropping regimes on soil physicochemical properties, richness and distribution of fungal community, and morel primordial production. In this study, we employed rDNA metabarcoding and microbial network analysis to evaluate the effect of non-continuous and continuous cropping regimes on the fungal community during three developmental stages of black morel production, namely, the bare soil mycelium, mushroom conidial, and primordial stages. The results showed that during the first year, M. sextelata mycelium overwhelmed the resident soil fungal community by reducing the alpha diversity and niche breadth of soil fungal patterns by a greater amount compared to the continuous cropping regime, leading to high crop yield of 12.39 ± 6.09/quadrat but less complex soil mycobiome. To sustain continuous cropping, exogenous nutrition bags and morel mycelial spawn were consecutively added to the soil. The additional nutrient input stimulated the growth of fungal saprotrophic decomposers. The degrading activity of soil saprotrophs, including M.sextelata, caused a significant increase in soil nutrient content. This led to an inhibitory effect on the formation of morel primordia, resulting in a sharp decline to 0.29 ± 0.25/quadrat and 0.17 ± 0.24/quadrat, respectively, in the final morel cropping. Our findings provided a dynamic overview of the soil fungal community during morel mushroom production, allowing us to identify beneficial and detrimental fungal taxa in the soil mycobiome involved in morel cultivation. The information acquired from this study can be applied to mitigate the adverse impact of continuous cropping on the yield of black morel.

Mycorrhizae enhance drought tolerance of trifoliate orange by regulating circadian clock response patterns

Either arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus or circadian clock plays an important role in enhancing the tolerance of plants to soil drought, whereas it is not known whether the change of circadian rhythm is involved in mycorrhiza-enhanced drought tolerance in host plants. The purpose of this study was to investigate effects of an arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus Funneliformis mosseae on biomass production, root morphology, and expressions of circadian clock genes and drought-responsive genes in roots of trifoliate orange plants under drought stress conditions. After 8 weeks of soil drought, root mycorrhizal colonization rate and the length of soil mycelium significantly decreased, together with improved leaf, stem, and root biomass production and root morphology by mycorrhizal fungus. Expressions of six circadian clock genes (PtPRR7, PtCCA1, PtLHY, PtGI, PtPIF3, and PtSRR1) and three drought-responsive genes (PtMn-SOD, PtPOD, and PtCAT1) showed obvious circadian rhythm during the day. Under soil drought, F. mosseae induced the expression of PtPRR7, PtGI, and PtSRR1 at 17:00, PtPIF3 and PtSRR1 at 21:00, and PtPRR7, PtPIF3, and PtSRR1 at 1:00, whereas decreased the expression of PtLHY at all the tested time points. F. mosseae also up-regulated expressions of drought-responsive gene (PtFe-SOD, PtMn-SOD, PtCu/Zn-SOD, PtPOD, and PtLEA) at 17:00, 21:00 and 1:00 under drought conditions. Correlation analysis indicated the significant correlation between circadian clock gene expressions and drought-responsive gene expressions. These results conclude that mycorrhizal fungi regulate the circadian rhythm of trifoliate orange to respond to drought.

Design and Validation of qPCR-Specific Primers for Quantification of the Marketed Terfezia claveryi and Terfezia crassiverrucosa in Soil.

Desert truffle crop is a pioneer in southeastern Spain, a region where native edible hypogeous fungi are adapted to the semiarid areas with low annual rainfall. Terfezia claveryi Chatin was the first species of desert truffle to be cultivated, and has been increasing in recent years as an alternative rainfed crop in the Iberian Peninsula. However, its behaviour in the field has yet not been investigated. For this purpose, specific primers were designed for the soil DNA quantification of both T. claveryi and Terfezia crassiverrucosa and a real-time qPCR protocol was developed, using the ITS rDNA region as a target. Moreover, a young desert truffle orchard was sampled for environmental validation. The results showed the highest efficiency for the TerclaF3/TerclaR1 primers pair, 89%, and the minimal fungal biomass that could be reliable detected was set at 4.23 µg mycelium/g soil. The spatial distribution of fungal biomass was heterogeneous, and there was not a direct relationship between the quantity of winter soil mycelium and the location/productivity of desert truffles. This protocol could be applied to tracking these species in soil and understand their mycelial dynamics in plantations and wild areas.

Soil fungal community and mating type development of Tuber melanosporum in a 20-year chronosequence of black truffle plantations

Black truffle plantations are established on the basis that Tuber melanosporum Vittad. spreads from artificially inoculated trees. Although truffle cultivation has progressed tremendously over the past 30 years, the ecological processes underlying T. melanosporum mycelium expansion and its interactions with the rest of the fungal community over time are not completely understood. Controversy exists on how mating type distribution evolves with time and its incidence on truffle production. We studied the soil fungal community and mating type distribution in plantations before truffle production (3, 5 and 7 years and after plantation establishment) and during the production period (10, 14 and 20 years) at three distances from the tree stem: 40, 100 and 200 cm. We found that T. melanosporum developed steadily over the years as extraradical mycelium, first at the nearest part of the tree and later up to 200 cm. T. melanosporum development was not correlated with changes in other ectomycorrhizal fungi and was negatively correlated with lower relative abundance of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and of non-root associated guilds such as moulds, yeasts and plant pathogens. Mating type frequency did not change across years. Twenty years after establishment no signs of replacement of T. melanosporum by other fungi nor biases in mating type abundance were observed in soil mycelia, indicating that T. melanosporum can colonize and dominate the surrounding soil in mature Quercus ilex L. plantations.

Lung microbiome influences Coccidioides colonization and invasiveness

Abstract It has long been thought that the lung is a sterile environment; however, recent studies revealed that healthy lungs are colonized by bacteria, fungi, and viruses. Coccidioidomycosis, also known as Valley fever, is a lung infection caused by the fungal species Coccidioides. Because of poor testing strategies 60–80% of patients are treated with antibiotics prior to accurate diagnosis of coccidioidomycosis. This potentially depletes bacteria with symbiotic relationships within the lung microenvironment and promotes susceptibility to invasion by Coccidioides. Coccidioides immitis is a dimorphic fungal pathogens whose fungal life cycle alternates between the saprophytic phase (soil mycelia) and parasitic phase (tissue infecting spherules). Natural microbial antagonists that inhibit soil Coccidioides immitis have been identified; Bacillus subtilis displays antifungal activity against Coccidioides growth through a clear zone of inhibition between fungi and bacteria. Whether these findings hold true in the host phase of the Coccidioides life cycle is unknown but have major implications for patient treatment. Our preliminary data suggest that host microbiome inhibits Coccidioides growth, and antibiotic treatment shifts or depletes the lung microbiome allowing a niche for Coccidioides growth. We are also exploring how this interface between the lung, Coccidioides, and the microbiome influences host innate and adaptive immune responses. Furthermore, these findings could shape the way physicians assess prescription of antibiotics prior to fungal diagnosis.

The Protective Biochemical Properties of Arbuscular Mycorrhiza Extraradical Mycelium in Acidic Soils Are Maintained throughout the Mediterranean Summer Conditions

In acidic soils with manganese (Mn) toxicity, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) can improve plant host growth by enhancing nutrition and protecting against environmental stress. The intact extraradical mycelium (ERM) of AMF is able to survive Mediterranean summer conditions and provide an earlier colonization of winter crops. This study evaluated if summer season conditions hindered the beneficial effects of wheat colonization by the intact ERM associated with a native plant, in acidic soil. Wheat was grown in soil with intact or disrupted ERM associated with Ornithopus compressus (ORN), developed for 7 or 24 weeks, to simulate ERM summer survival. The activity of antioxidant enzymes was determined, and the quantitative analysis of Mn and macronutrients was performed by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), in wheat shoots and respective subcellular fractions. Wheat colonization by intact ERM decreased shoot Mn concentration but increased the proportion of Mn in the apoplast. Overall, antioxidant enzymatic activity decreased but the proportion of Mn-superoxide dismutase activity over the remaining isoforms increased, suggesting its important role in the AMF-mediated mitigation of Mn toxicity. Summer conditions did not substantially reduce the benefits provided by ORN ERM. A no-till strategy allied to the development of native microbiota can contribute to the sustainable optimization of acidic soil use.

The advancing mycelial frontier of ectomycorrhizal fungi.

This article is a Commentary on Hagenbo et al. (2021), 230: 1609–1622.

White mulch and irrigation increase black truffle soil mycelium when competing with summer truffle in young truffle orchards

The black truffle (Tuber melanosporum Vittad.) and the summer truffle (Tuber aestivum Vittad.) are two of the most appreciated edible fungi worldwide. The natural distributions of both species partially overlap. However, the interspecific interactions between these truffles and how irrigation and mulching techniques impact the dynamics between them are still unknown. Here, an experimental truffle plantation with Quercus ilex was established in Maials (Catalonia, Spain), combining three soil mulch treatments (white mulch, black mulch and bare soil as a control) and two irrigation regimes (irrigated and non-irrigated as a control) to investigate truffle mycelial dynamics in soil when both truffle species co-occur. The development of truffle mycelium in two different seasons (spring and autumn) in two consecutive years (2017 and 2018) was quantified using qPCR. Truffle mycelia of both species showed greatest development under white mulch. When mycelia of both truffle species co-occurred in soil, irrigation combined with white mulch resulted in greater quantities of T. melanosporum mycelial biomass, whereas the control irrigation treatment favoured the development of T. aestivum. Mulch treatments were also advantageous for seedling growth, which was expressed as root collar diameter and its increment during the study period. Significant relationships between root collar diameter and root growth and the amount of mycelial biomass in the soil were observed for both truffle species. Our results indicate the potential advantages of using white mulch to support irrigation in truffle plantations located in areas with dry Mediterranean climatic conditions to promote the development of Tuber mycelium.

Production and turnover of mycorrhizal soil mycelium relate to variation in drought conditions in Mediterranean Pinus pinaster, Pinus sylvestris and Quercus ilex forests.

In forests, ectomycorrhizal mycelium is pivotal for driving soil carbon and nutrient cycles, but how ectomycorrhizal mycelial dynamics vary in ecosystems with drought periods is unknown. We quantified the production and turnover of mycorrhizal mycelium in Mediterranean Pinus pinaster, Pinus sylvestris and Quercus ilex forests and related the estimates to standardised precipitation index (SPI), to study how mycelial dynamics relates to tree species and drought-moisture conditions. Production and turnover of mycelium was estimated between July and February, by quantifying the fungal biomass (ergosterol) in ingrowth mesh bags and using statistical modelling. SPI for time scales of 1-3months was calculated from precipitation records and precipitation data over the study period. Forests dominated by Pinus trees displayed higher biomass but were seasonally more variable, as opposed to Q.ilex forests where the mycelial biomass remained lower and stable over the season. Production and turnover, respectively, varied between 1.4-5.9kgha-1 d-1 and 7.2-9.9 times yr-1 over the different forest types and were positively correlated with 2-month and 3-month SPI over the study period. Our results demonstrated that mycorrhizal mycelial biomass varied with season and tree species and we speculate that production and turnover are related to physiology and plant host performance during drought.

Secret lifestyles of pyrophilous fungi in the genus Sphaerosporella.

PremisePyrophilous fungi form aboveground fruiting structures (ascocarps) following wildfires, but their ecology, natural history, and life cycles in the absence of wildfires are largely unknown. Sphaerosporella is considered to be pyrophilous. This study explores Sphaerosporella ascocarp appearance following a rare 2016 wildfire in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (GSMNP), compares the timing of ascocarp formation with recovery of Sphaerosporella DNA sequences in soils, and explores the association of Sphaerosporella with post‐fire Table Mountain pine (Pinus pungens) seedlings.MethodsBurned sites in the GSMNP were surveyed for pyrophilous fungal ascocarps over 2 years. Ascocarps, mycorrhizae, and endophyte cultures were evaluated morphologically and by Sanger sequencing of the nuclear ribosomal ITS gene region (fungal barcode; Schoch et al., 2012). DNA from soil cores was subjected to Illumina sequencing.ResultsThe timing and location of post‐fire Sphaerosporella ascocarp formation was correlated with recovery of Sphaerosporella DNA sequences in soils. Genetic markers (fungal barcode) of Sphaerosporella were also recovered from mycorrhizal root tips and endophyte cultures from seedlings of Pinus pungens.ConclusionsThis study demonstrates that Sphaerosporella species, in the absence of fire, are biotrophic, forming both mycorrhizal and endophytic associations with developing Pinus pungens seedlings and may persist in nature in the absence of wildfire as a conifer symbiont. We speculate that Sphaerosporella may fruit only after the host plant is damaged or destroyed and that after wildfires, deep roots, needle endophytes, or heat‐resistant spores could serve as a source of soil mycelium.

Collecting fungal mycelium using in-growth mesh bags: Effects of the sand particle size and seasonality

In-growth mesh bag technique is widely used for assessing production and turnover of the fungal mycelium in soil, but remains poorly standardized. This research aims at testing the use of quartz sand of different particle size, as a filling for in-growth mesh bags, in order to obtain a maximum amount of fungal mycelium. Mesh bags were incubated in a Norway spruce forest in Central Russia in June and September. Mycelial biomass was higher in sand of coarse (>0.5 mm) particle size and reached maximum (up to 798 μg of mycelium dry weight g−1 sand) in June. A relatively short incubation time (up to 30 days) was sufficient for estimating mycelium biomass and for collecting mycelium for isotopic analyses. The δ13C and δ15N values of fungal mycelium collected at the depths of 10 and 25 cm did not differ. Mycelium was depleted by 2.5‰ in 15N compared to mycorrhizal and by 3.0‰ in 13C compared to saprotrophic fruit bodies. This observation should be taken into account in the isotope-based reconstructions of belowground food webs.

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi serve as keystone taxa for revegetation on the Tibetan Plateau.

Revegetation is widely used to enhance degraded topsoil recovery with the enhancements of soil nutrient accumulation and soil structure stabilization. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are important for the allocation of carbon into the soil and the formation of soil aggregates. Thus, we hypothesized that AMF could construct more niches for other microbes during revegetation, making AMF keystone taxa of soil. Soil fungal and bacterial communities were investigated under a revegetation experiment and correlation networks between soil fungi and bacteria were constructed. Simultaneously, the plant growth level, soil properties and structure, and soil microbial carbon decomposition abilities were measured. The results revealed that AMF were the most central fungi at the phylum (degree = 3), class (degree = 11), and family (degree = 15) levels. The reads number of AMF were positively correlated with both fungal (R2 = 0.431, P < 0.001) and bacterial (R2 = 0.106, P = 0.044) richness. Higher colonization of AMF in roots and/or more AMF extraradical mycelium and spores in soil indicated a better plant growth, more stable soil aggregates, and a higher carbon decomposition ratio. Our results highlight that AMF are keystone taxa in revegetation, as they play significant roles in enhancing the recovery of the belowground microbiome diversity, soil structure stability, and nutrients cycling. The positive roles of AMF in revegetation support the application of AMF in ecosystem recovery.

Streptomyces coelicolor in an oxygen-limited liquid environment: adapt and escape

Streptomycetes are mycelial soil bacteria that undergo a complex developmental cycle on solid media. Spores germinate and form a branched, vegetative mycelium. Several signals trigger the formation of hydrophobic aerial hyphae that differentiate further into reproductive chains of spores. Differentiation is accompanied by the production of secondary metabolites, e.g. antibiotics.

Effect of summer soil moisture and temperature on the vertical distribution of Tuber magnatum mycelium in soil

Tuber magnatum, the Italian white truffle, is the world’s most valuable truffle. Despite the economic importance, its biology and ecology are largely unexplored. This gap of knowledge makes difficult to find reliable methods for its cultivation and to protect and increase the production of the natural productive areas. In this study, the vertical distribution of T. magnatum mycelium in productive soil patches was evaluated using a quantitative PCR (qPCR) approach. Data were then used to develop for the first time a simulation model to predict the mycelial dynamics of T. magnatum at varying soil temperatures and moisture. T. magnatum mycelium was abundant up to 30-cm depth, while the model determined the optimal temperature (20 °C) and water potential (~ 0 kPa) for growth of T. magnatum mycelium in soil. Such information could be useful to establish proper irrigation scheduling and to enhance the management of T. magnatum sites, for increasing mycelial growth and fruiting body production.

Insights into the dynamics of Boletus edulis mycelium and fruiting after fire prevention management

Boletus edulis Bull. is among the most valuable mushroom species worldwide. Cistus ladanifer L. scrublands host an extraordinarily high production of this profitable fungus. Its fructification varies greatly among years depending on factors such as stand age and density along with climatic variables. Important information is missing, however, on the dynamics of this species, particularly at the below-ground level and its correlation with sporocarp production. We sought to improve understanding of the ecology of this species that could allow prediction of B. edulis production using faster and less expensive procedures under forest management scenarios.Under the hypothesis that fire prevention management influences the presence of Boletus edulis mycelium and thus, the production of sporocarps, different management treatments were performed. These consisted of different levels of fuel reduction: (controlled burning, total clearing, 50% clearing, and uncleared), established in scrublands of different ages/origins (young-fire, young-cleared and senescent). To analyse B. edulis mycelium in the soil, soil samples were taken at three different times during the year, quantifying B. edulis DNA by real-time PCR using specific primers and Taq-man probes. To analyse B. edulis production, all sporocarps were collected and weighed on a weekly basis during the autumn season.Our results confirmed that management significantly influence quantities of B. edulis mycelium in soil and sporocarp yields that were highest in the uncleared plots and lowest in total clearing plots. Fifty percent clearing plots showed a significant recovery for both mycelium quantity and B. edulis yields after three years.Concerning the origin of the stand, young-fire plots had the highest amounts of B. edulis mycelium in the soil. A positive correlation was detected between B. edulis fresh weight production and the amount of mycelium in the soil suggesting the ability to predict B. edulis yields using faster and less costly methods than weekly inventories carried out for several autumn seasons.