Sporulatton Of Some Amf Isolates On Several Media And Host Plants

Abstract: Arbuscular Mycorrhiza (AM) fungi cannot be cultured in vitro. The best way to produce viable inoculum is to culture propagules in pots and collect new spores. In ⢠order to understand the conditions which optimize sporulation, the effect of different combinations of media of different porosity on three host plants (Bauhinia sp., Paspalum sp., and Zea mays) were studied. The results suggest that mycorrhizal dicots will produce more spores on media with less porosity and mycorrhizal monocots on media with more porosity. Dicots take longer time to colonize than monocots. This result may be explained by differences in the respective root structures. Monocots have shallow roots and will produce a greater number of root hairs in more porous media where water drains quicker and is less available. These root hairs provide a larger niche for AM fungi. Key words :arbuscular-mycorrhiza, sporulation, Zea mays, Paspalum sp., Bauhinia s