Effects of phosphorus application and vesicular arbuscular mycorrhizal inoculation on the growth and phosphorus nutrition of maize

Abstract

The growth and nutrition of maize (Zea mays L.) grown with and without the soil application of phosphorus (P) fertilizer and/or mycorrhizal inoculum was studied in pots placed under field environments. Inoculation enhanced the growth of maize significantly (up to 81.8%) during the early stages but response gradually disappeared during the later stages of growth. Addition of phosphate increased plant growth, but suppressed mycorrhizal infection. In the first half of the season, the stimulation in plant growth was related to higher rates of P uptake by the inoculated plants, but later a decline of growth in these treatments was most probably due to fungal parasitism as a result of high root densities.