AM Fungi Alleviate Phosphorus Limitation and Enhance Nutrient Competitiveness of Invasive Plants via Mycorrhizal Networks in Karst Areas

Kaiping Shen, J. Hans C. Cornelissen, Yongjian Wang, Changbang Wu, Yuejun He*, Jing Ou, Qiyu Tan, Tingting Xia, Liling Kang, Yun Guo, Bangli Wu

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to JournalArticleAcademicpeer-review

    Abstract

    Eupatorium adenophorum is an alien species that threatens community stability and diversity in karst areas. Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi form interconnected mycorrhizal network, connecting adjacent plants and plant species. How mycorrhizal networks affect the competition for nutrients between invasive and native plants in karst habitat remains unclear at present. An experiment was conducted using a compartmental growing device, which was composed of two planting compartments (for the invasive E. adenophorum or native Artemisia annua) and a competitive compartment (for the interconnected mycorrhizal network). The experiment contained mycorrhizal fungus treatments, with AM fungi (M+) and without AM fungi (M) using the species Claroideoglomus etunicatum, and the nutrient utilization treatments using nylon mesh to interconnective mycorrhizal networks, including common utilization (Cu), single utilization (Su), and non-utilization (Nu). The results showed as follows: AM fungi differentially increased biomass, nitrogen (N) acquisition and phosphorus (P) acquisition and significantly reduced N/P ratio of the invasive E. adenophorum and native A. annua under Cu, Su, and Nu conditions. Additionally, the biomass, N acquisition and P acquisition of E. adenophorum was greater than A. annua and the N/P ratio of E. adenophorum was significantly lower than A. annua under Cu condition, which AM fungi promoted the accumulation of biomass, N and P for E. adenophorum and A. annua, and E. adenophorum experienced a greater reduction of P limitation than A. annua via the interconnected mycorrhizal network. In conclusion, we suggest that AM fungi endow invasive plants greater alleviation of P limitation and enhancement of nutrient competition than native plants via mycorrhizal network in low-P karst soil.

    Original languageEnglish
    Article number125
    Pages (from-to)1-12
    Number of pages12
    JournalFrontiers in Ecology and Evolution
    Volume8
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 13 May 2020

    Funding

    This study was supported by the national Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC: 31660156; 31360106; 31560223), the First-class Disciplines Program on Ecology of Guizhou Province (GNYL[2017]007), the Natural Science Foundation of China and the Karst Science Research Center of Guizhou Province (Grant No. U1812401), the Guizhou High-level (hundred-levels) Innovative Talents Project (Qiankehe talent-platform [2020] 6004), the Provincial Key Technologies R&D Program of Guizhou Province of China (NY[2014]3029; [2016] Zhi-cheng 2805), the Special Program Foundation on Training the Young Talents for Science & Technology by Guizhou Province (Qian-ke-he-ren [2013]10), the Talent-platform Program of Guizhou Province ([2017]5788; [2018]5781).

    Keywords

    • arbuscular mycorrhizal
    • invasive plants
    • karst
    • mycorrhizal network
    • nutrient competition

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