Aspen Bibliography

Response of ecto- and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi to clear-cutting and the application of chipped aspen wood in a mixedwood site in Alberta, Canada

Document Type

Article

Journal/Book Title/Conference

Applied Soil Ecology

Volume

7

Issue

3

First Page

257

Last Page

269

Publication Date

1998

Abstract

Ecto- and arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) response to clear-cutting and the application of 5 and 10 cm deep layers of chipped aspen wood was determined in a boreal, mixedwood site dominated by aspen poplar (Populus tremuloides), a species which suckers readily following disturbance. Forest floor disturbance was kept to a minimum during and following clear-cutting. One and two years after clear-cutting and wood chip application, aspen roots in uncut, clear-cut, and clear-cut plus application of a 5 cm or 10 cm layer of wood chips were examined for their ectomycorrhizal (EM) status while roots of the grass, Calamagrostis canadensis, were assessed for their AM status. There was extensive mortality of aspen roots during the first 2 years after cutting although many roots persisted for 1 year and small pockets of regenerating roots were detected after 2 years. Percent mycorrhizal colonization of aspen roots was 90–100% in all treatments over the term of the study indicating that the inoculum potential of the EM fungi was maintained for 2 years post-harvest. Cenococcum geophilum, Cortinarius spp., Russula spp. and Tomentella spp. were abundant on roots from all treatments. Clear-cutting and wood chip application did not seem to reduce the regeneration potential of these fungi over the short-term. In addition to the aforementioned genera, Piloderma byssinum occurred frequently in the unharvested plots, Mycelium radicis atrovirens was common in plots which had received 5 cm of wood chips while Hebeloma was abundant in plots spread with 10 cm of wood chips. With the exception of the 10 cm wood chip treatment, the majority of aspen mycorrhizae were formed by fungi which produce microscopic, resupinate or hypogeous fruitbodies rather than large fleshy fruitbodies. AM colonization of C. canadensis roots was inhibited by the application of 10 cm of wood chips but was unaffected by harvesting and the application of 5 cm of wood chips. Short-term effects of clear-cutting and wood chip treatment on the colonizing abilities of EM and AM fungi appeared to be minimal; long-term impacts require further monitoring.

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