Endomycorrhizae Enhance Growth of Shrub Species in Processed Oil Shale and Disturbed Native Soil

Abstract

A greenhouse experiment was conducted to determine if the inoculation of native shrubs with vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhizal (VAM) fungi would provide plants better adapted for a minimaltreatment revegetation program for processed oil shale and disturbed native soil. Seedlings of fourwing saltbush {Atriplex canescens (Pursh.) Nutt.}, big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata Nutt. ssp. wyomingensis), rubber rabbitbrush {Chrysothamnus nauseosus (Pall.) Britton var. nauseosus}, and greasewood {Sarcobatus vermiculatus (Hook.) Torr. var. vermiculatus} were inoculated with Glomus fasciculatum (Thaxter sensu Gerdemann) Gerdemann and Trappe, and Glomus mosseae (Nicol. and Gerd.) Gerdemann and Trappe. Inoculated and noninoculated plants were transplanted into Paraho processed oil shale and disturbed native soil in a containerized system. Plants inoculated with VAM fungi had greater shoot biomass and phosphorus (P) contents than noninoculated plants in both media. Inoculation with VAM fungi had a variable effect on the nitrogen (N) contents of plants in both media. When fertilized with 34 kg/ha N and P, inoculated plants were more effective in taking up applied P than noninoculated plants. Mycorrhizal infection levels were greatly reduced when inoculated plants were grown in processed shale.