Effect of AMF Inoculation on Reducing Excessive Fertilizer Use

• Published in: Microorganisms (Basel) Vol. 12; no. 8; p. 1550
• Main Authors: Qian, Siru, Xu, Ying, Zhang, Yifei, Wang, Xue, Niu, Ximei, Wang, Ping
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 29-07-2024; MDPI
• Subjects: Agricultural production; Agrochemicals; Arbuscular mycorrhizas; Chemical compounds; Corn; Crop yield; Crops; Dietary supplements; Fertility; Fertilization; Fertilizer use reduction; Fertilizers; Fungi; Inoculation; low-phosphorus soils; mycorrhizal effect; Nitrogen; Nutrients; Phosphorus; Phosphorus content; phosphorus supplementation; plant trait; Potassium; Soil chemistry; Soil fertility; soil mycelium density; Soil nutrients; Soil structure; China; Beijing China; Jilin China; low-phosphorus soils; soil mycelium density; phosphorus supplementation; mycorrhizal effect; plant trait
• ISSN: 2076-2607; 2076-2607
• DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms12081550

Excessive use of chemical fertilizer is a global concern. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are considered a potential solution due to their symbiotic association with crops. This study assessed AMF's effects on maize yield, fertilizer efficiency, plant traits, and soil nutrients under different reduced-fertilizer regimes in medium-low fertility fields. We found that phosphorus supplementation after a 30% fertilizer reduction enhanced AMF's positive impact on grain yield, increasing it by 3.47% with pure chemical fertilizers and 6.65% with mixed fertilizers. The AMF inoculation did not significantly affect the nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer use efficiency, but significantly increased root colonization and soil mycelium density. Mixed fertilizer treatments with phosphorus supplementation after fertilizer reduction showed greater mycorrhizal effects on plant traits and soil nutrient contents compared to chemical fertilizer treatments. This study highlights that AMF inoculation, closely linked to fertilization regimes, can effectively reduce fertilizer use while sustaining or enhancing maize yields.