The effect of Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and biostimulating algae extract on establishment, growth and development of Vitis vinifera : a field study conducted in Sweden

Abstract: About 23% of total global net anthropogenic emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) come from agricultural and forestry related activities. One of the largest contributors of GHG is the usage of nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P) fertilizers, causing eutrophication and contributing to global warming. Agriculture needs to become more productive, but with a reduced environmental impact. The solution might be usage of plant biostimulators. Biostimulators are fairly new within the agricultural sector and are used in order to improve plant growth. They can neither be classified as a fertilizer, nor plant protection. Biostimulators increase availability and uptake of macro- and micronutrients and the most famous plant biostimulator is Arbuscular mycorrhiza (AMF). AMF and a biostimulating algae extract were inoculated on bare root Vitis vinifera plants. During a period of 8 weeks they were phenologically assessed with a BBCH-scale, soil samples were taken and roots extracted and analyzed in microscope. The result showed no increased growth of vine shoot, when inoculated with biostimulator. An increase in vegetative growth of axillary shoot was observed for plants inoculated with AMF in comparison to a control, suggesting increased uptake of N and P. Factors possibly affecting the result might have been abiotic factors, amount of inoculum applied prior to planting, damage to the vine apex or levels of P in the soil. Future studies would have to investigate whether other concentrations of inoculum would generate a different result as well as if symbiosis is viable over time and not only for one season.