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Sharing rotting wood in the shade: ectomycorrhizal communities of co-occurringbirch and hemlock seedlings

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Abstract

Coarse woody debris (CWD)is an important nursery environment for many tree species. Understanding the communities of ectomycorrhizal fungi (ECMF)and the effect of ECMF species on tree seedling condition in CWD will elucidate the potential for ECMF-mediatedeffects on seedling dynamics. In hemlock-dominatedstands, we characterized ECMF communities associated with eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis (L.) Carr) and yellow birch (Betula alleghaniensis Britt) seedling pairs growing on CWD. Seedling foliage and CWD were analyzed chemically, and seedling growth, canopy cover, and canopy species determined. Thirteen fungal taxa, 12 associated with birch, and 6 with hemlock, were identified based on morphology and ITS sequencing. Five species were shared by co-occurringbirch and hemlock, representing 75 % of ectomycorrhizal root tips. Rarified ECMF taxon richness per seedling was higher on birch than hemlock. Nonmetric multidimensional scaling revealed significant correlations between ordination axes, the mutually exclusive ECMF Tomentella and Lactarius spp., foliar N and K, CWD pH, and exchangeable Ca and Mg. Seedlings colonized by Lactarius and T. sublilacina differed significantly in foliar K and N, and CWD differed in exchangeable Ca and Mg. CWD pH and nutrient concentrations were low but foliar macro-nutrientconcentrations were not. We hypothesize that the dominant ECMF are adapted to low root carbohydrate availability typical in shaded environments but differ in their relative supply of different nutrients.

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Acknowledgments

Funding for this project was provided by the McIntire-StennisCooperative Forestry Research Program, the Ecosystem Science Center at Michigan Technological University, and by the USDA Forest Service, Northern Research Station, Houghton, MI. We would especially like to thank Louis J. Lamit for help with statistical analysis and Lynette Potvin for help with laboratory techniques and methods. We would also like to thank two anonymous reviewers for commenting on earlier drafts of this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Forest Resources and Environmental Science, Michigan Technological University, 1400 Townsend Drive, Houghton, MI, 49931-1295, USA

    Sarah K. Poznanovic & Christopher R. Webster

  2. Forestry Sciences Laboratory, Northern Research Station, USDA Forest Service, 410 MacInnes Drive, Houghton, MI, 49931, USA

    Erik A. Lilleskov

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  1. Sarah K. Poznanovic
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  2. Erik A. Lilleskov
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Correspondence to Erik A. Lilleskov.

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Poznanovic, S.K., Lilleskov, E.A. & Webster, C.R. Sharing rotting wood in the shade: ectomycorrhizal communities of co-occurringbirch and hemlock seedlings. Mycorrhiza 25, 153–164 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00572-014-0597-0

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