Response of a wild-type and modern cowpea cultivars to arbuscular mycorrhizal inoculation in sterilized and non-sterilized soil
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Date
2018
Authors
Oruru, Marjorie Bonareri
Njeru, Ezekiel Mugendi
Pasquet, Remy
Runo, Steve
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Taylor & Francis
Abstract
Cowpea is an important crop that serves as a legume and vegetable source to
many smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa. Soil fertility is a significant
limitation to its production thus; inoculation with beneficial soil biota such as
arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) could improve its performance. However,
plant–AMF interaction could vary based on crop cultivar hence affecting
overall crop production. The present study aimed at determining the effect
of AMF inoculation and soil sterilization on root colonization and growth of a
wild-type and three modern cowpea cultivars grown by smallholder farmers
in Kenya. Potted cowpea plants were inoculated with a commercial AMF
inoculum comprising of Rhizophagus irregularis, Funneliformis mosseae,
Glomus aggregatum and Glomus etunicatum and maintained in a greenhouse
for 40 days. After harvesting, mycorrhizal colonization, nodule number and
dry weight, root and shoot dry weights, nitrogen (N,) phosphorus (P) and
potassium (K) content were determined. Interestingly, the modern cultivars
showed significantly (p < 0.001) higher root colonization, nodulation, shoot P
and N compared to the wild-type cultivar. Moreover, a strong positive
correlation between AMF root colonization and shoot P (r2 D 0.73, 0.90, p <
0.001), AMF root colonization and shoot N (r2 D 0.78; 0.89, p < 0.001) was
observed in both sterilized and non-sterilized soil, respectively. Soil
sterilization affected root colonization and growth parameters with plants
grown in non-sterilized soil performing better than those grown in sterilized
soil. This study provides major evidence that modern cowpea cultivars are
still responsive to mycorrhizal inoculation suggesting that modern breeding
programs are not deleterious AMF symbiosis.
Description
Research Article
Keywords
Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, Cowpea cultivars, Root colonization, Smallholder farmers
Citation
Marjorie Bonareri Oruru, Ezekiel Mugendi Njeru, Remy Pasquet & Steve Runo (2018) Response of a wild-type and modern cowpea cultivars to arbuscular mycorrhizal inoculation in sterilized and non-sterilized soil, Journal of Plant Nutrition, 41:1, 90-101, DOI: 10.1080/01904167.2017.1381728