FUNgi! How Mycorrhizal Fungi Affects the Growth of Desmodium Canadense and Salvia Azurea

Abstract

When fungi are mentioned along with any plant species it is widely thought of as a negative relationship, however this may not always be the case. It seems there is still much to learn about the relationships that mycorrhizal fungi forms with the plants it interacts with. To better our understanding, we tested this over an 8-week period by separating our species into 4 variable groups per species, being (LI)=Living prairie soil; inoculated with commercial mycorrhizal inoculum, (SI)=Sterilized prairie soil, inoculated with commercial mycorrhizal inoculum, (LN)=Living prairie soil, not inoculated with commercial mycorrhizal inoculum, and (SN)=Sterilized prairie soil, not inoculated with commercial mycorrhizal inoculum. For week one, we transported each plant to their respective groups and placed them in a controlled environment grow room to be watered regularly by our lab TA. Weeks four through seven, we measured the growth of each plant in cm. and recorded our data in an excel file. Upon the end of the experiment at week eight, we harvested the plants by removing them from their pots and washing off all of the excess dirt on their roots. After dried, the plants were placed in paper bags to be placed aside until our next lab period. When we returned to lab, the plants were cut into small pieces and weighed in grams.