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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania » Eastern Regional Research Center » Characterization and Interventions for Foodborne Pathogens » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #336628
Research Project: Production, Utilization, and Importance of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi in Sustainable Vegetable Production

Location: Characterization and Interventions for Foodborne Pathogens

Title: Positive yield response of eggplant (Solanum melongena L.) to inoculation with AM fungi produced on-farm

Author
item Douds, David
item CARR, ERIE - Rodale Institute
item SHENK, JOHN - Shenk'S Berry Farm
item GANSER, STEVE - Eagle Point Farm

Submitted to: Scientia Horticulturae
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/28/2017
Publication Date: 5/4/2017
Citation: Douds, D.D., Carr, E., Shenk, J., Ganser, S. 2017. Positive yield response of eggplant (Solanum melongena L.) to inoculation with AM fungi produced on-farm. Scientia Horticulturae. doi: 10.1016/j.scientia.2017.05.017.

Interpretive Summary: Arbuscular mycorrhizal [AM] fungi are beneficial soil fungi that form a symbiosis with the roots of most crop plants. The yield of these plants can be greater than those not colonized because of increased nutrient uptake and disease and drought resistance due to the symbiosis. We produced inoculum of these fungi and tested its usefulness at two cooperating farms for the production of eggplant. The fungi were mixed into the potting media used to grow seedlings for later transplanting outdoors at the farms. Some plants were left uninoculated as controls. Inoculation with AM fungi increased the yield of eggplant fruit 18% one year at one farm and 6-11% the other year at the second farm. This translated into an increase of 1- 1.5 extra fruit per plant. The use of inocula of AM fungi can increase the yield of eggplant with minimal changes to a farmer’s routine practices, resulting in significant benefit to the sustainability of small farms.

Technical Abstract: Inoculation of vegetable seedlings with arbuscular mycorrhizal [AM] fungi during the greenhouse growth phase is both biologically and economically practical. Inocula may be purchased or produced on-farm. This work contrasted the fruit yield response of eggplant seedlings with and without inoculation with AM fungi produced on-farm at one farm in 2015 and two farms in 2016. Inoculation significantly increased the yield of fruit the first year by 18% at one farm despite no impact upon overall shoot growth measured at the end of the greenhouse period or at the end of the growing season. Inoculation resulted in an increase of one fruit per plant. There was no response in 2016 at one farm, but inoculation with AM fungi increased the yield of fruit 11% vs. that of seedlings receiving low P addition in the greenhouse and 6% vs. those receiving high P. Here, this response amounted to an increase of 1.3 to 1.5 fruit per plant. The response to inoculation appeared to be inversely related to the number of propagules of AM fungi in the indigenous community of the field soil. Routine use of inocula of AM fungi can increase the yield of eggplant with minimal change to farmer’s normal practices.