Effectiveness of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungal Isolates from the Land Uses of Amazon Region in Symbiosis with Cowpea

ABSTRACT Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi provide several ecosystem services, including increase in plant growth and nutrition. The occurrence, richness, and structure of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi communities are influenced by human activities, which may affect the functional benefits of these components of the soil biota. In this study, 13 arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi isolates originating from soils with different land uses in the Alto Solimões-Amazon region were evaluated regarding their effect on growth, nutrition, and cowpea yield in controlled conditions using two soils. Comparisons with reference isolates and a mixture of isolates were also performed. Fungal isolates exhibited a wide variability associated with colonization, sporulation, production of aboveground biomass, nitrogen and phosphorus uptake, and grain yield, indicating high functional diversity within and among fungal species. A generalized effect of isolates in promoting phosphorus uptake, increase in biomass, and cowpea yield was observed in both soils. The isolates of Glomus were the most efficient and are promising isolates for practical inoculation programs. No relationship was found between the origin of fungal isolate (i.e. land use) and their symbiotic performance in cowpea