Page 45 - MNLGA Free State Summer 2024_WEB

• From the previous fact, proof of benefit does not always with a measured amount at the time of planting. The
translate to all production or landscape situations. bareroot plants were then immediately back filled by the
• The expense of inoculation may exceed the benefits and planter. This was a bit awkward for the men, but they got
one should evaluate the use of mycorrhizae just as one it done.
would evaluate any other production input. We treated two cultivars of Acer rubrum, three cultivars
• Application of mycorrhizae does not guarantee of Acer platanoides (especially slow growing) and Acer
inoculation which can usually be verified only by saccharum.
microscopic or DNA evaluation.
The white residue on the root system is the mycorrhizae
• If mycorrhizal inoculation is the goal, one must prove
powder.
successful inoculation occurs before continuing.
(continued on next page))
• Once plants become mycorrhizal there is no guarantee
they will remain so.
• Benefits incurred in a production system do not
guarantee transfer to the landscape.
• Changes in environmental and cultural factors can alter
mycorrhizal status in the plant.
• Mycorrhizae success in early plant development may not
continue as a plant matures.

References:
1. Dr. Fred Davies, Texas A&M University
2. Carolyn Scagel and Robert Linderman, USDA-ARS
Horticultural Crops Laboratory, Corvalis, Oregon

One of the concerns I discovered in my reading relates
to manufacturing efficacy. The issue is we can’t know
if the product is viable in the packaging. Then we may
never know if the treated soil/plants actually develop
mycorrhizal filaments without laboratory analysis. There
is some confusion as to whether mycorrhizae can be
Dosing the root system in the planter shoe
seen with the naked eye. One article says mycelium is
visible, but mycorrhizae are only visible with electron
microscopes. Another article says some mycorrhizae
can be seen with the naked eye while another article
says a compound microscope will do. Apparently new
techniques including staining and the use of blue violet
light with a microscope allow us to see mycorrhizae.

Our Experiment
I bought a powdered form of endomycorrhiza, which
is reported to be compatible with all maples, from a
reputable company. This web site lists the best plant
suitability for endomycorrhiza and ectomycorrhiza.
(https://greeneden.co/mycorrhizae-compatible-plants/)
Although the manufacturer gave no precautions as to
storage, we kept it cool and out of the light until the days
we used it on May 19, and May 20, 2022.
Immediately back filling the root system with the planter
Everything I have read makes it very clear the mycorrhizae
must come into contact with the plants root system to be
effective. To accomplish this, we dosed the root system (continued on next page))

Membership Matters • SUMMER 2024 45