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Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and success of Triadica sebifera invasion in coastal transition ecosystems along the northern Gulf of Mexico

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Abstract

Aims

We compared the degree of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) colonization on an invasive, Triadica sebifera, and two native, Baccharis halimifolia and Morella cerifera, woody species that occur in coastal Mississippi, USA. Specifically, we investigated how the degree of colonization affects growth of these species and assessed potential allelopathic effects of T. sebifera on the two native species.

Methods

A field study and a greenhouse experiment were used to determine the degree of AMF colonization on focal woody species. Seedling growth of these species was compared between active (fungicide untreated) and AMF-suppressed (fungicide treated) soils in the greenhouse experiment. In a second greenhouse experiment, we tested the potential allelopathic effects of T. sebifera on the native species by growing the natives in soils from T. sebifera invaded or uninvaded regions, with and without activated carbon (AC).

Results

The invasive species, Triadica sebifera, exhibited a higher degree of AMF colonization compared to the native species and significantly higher total biomass in active soils compared to AMF-suppressed soils. Seedling biomass and AMF colonization of native B. halimifolia and M. cerifera did not differ between T. sebifera invaded and uninvaded soils, irrespective of the application of AC.

Conclusions

Results suggest that invasive T. sebifera benefits from the presence of AMF, which might facilitate establishment of this invader. Results also suggest that allelopathy is not a likely mechanism of T. sebifera invasion in coastal transition ecosystems. A higher degree of AMF colonization, relative to native co-occurring species, may partly explain the successful invasion of T. sebifera into coastal plant communities of the southeastern USA.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Matt Abbott, Chelsey Hiller, and Amanda Thalhammer for their assistance in the field and staff of the Plant Biology greenhouse at Southern Illinois University Carbondale for assistance with the greenhouse experiments. We are grateful to Ryan Campbell for his help during the planning stages of the project, Dr. David Gibson and Jesse Fruchter for reading and providing constructive comments on an earlier version of this manuscript, and two anonymous reviewers of this paper for their useful suggestions. We also thank the staff at Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, and particularly Dr. Mark Woodrey, for logistical support.

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  1. Department of Plant Biology & Center for Ecology, Southern Illinois University Carbondale, Carbondale, IL, 62901, USA

    Shishir Paudel, Sara G. Baer & Loretta L. Battaglia

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  1. Shishir Paudel
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  2. Sara G. Baer
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  3. Loretta L. Battaglia
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Correspondence to Shishir Paudel.

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Paudel, S., Baer, S.G. & Battaglia, L.L. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and success of Triadica sebifera invasion in coastal transition ecosystems along the northern Gulf of Mexico. Plant Soil 378, 337–349 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-014-2026-8

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