INFLUENCE OF INOCULATION WITH VA MYCORRHIZAL FUNGUS GLOMUS SP ON GROWTH OF STRAWBERRIES AND RUNNER FORMATION

Meristem explants of strawberry, Fragaria ananassa Duch.cv. Redgauntlet, were inoculated with spores of the VA mycorrhizal fungus Glomus sp. isolated from a field maize culture. The strawberry plants were cultivated for 10 weeks in a sterilized mixture of soil, peat, perlite and sand in a growth chamber. At harvest time the mean VA mycorrhizal infection was approximately 45 %. Total plant biomass of mycorrhizal plants was significantly decreased. However, the inoculation positively influenced runner formation. Their biomass was increased, similarly to the length of stolons. A significantly higher phosphorus level was detected in all parts of mycorrhizal plants. Nitrogen concentration was not affected by the inoculation. © 1990.