Role of mycorrhizae, pathogens and weeds in sustainable pine forest management | Forestry in a changing political environment: challenges for the 21st century
1997
Korf, H. | Khalil, S. | Labuschagne, N. | Reinhardt, C. F. | Mushove, P. | Mubaiwa, M. | Mukwekwerere, M. | Pfukwa, C.
High mortality and growth suppression of pine seedlings after being planted on previously cultivated lands, is a serious problem faced by the South African forest industry. Greenhouse studies were conducted to determine the effect of weeds on infection of pine roots by pathogenic Pythium spp. Results showed zero incidence of Pythium in pine roots grown without weeds, whereas treatments with weeds showed more than 40% incidence of this pathogen in pine roots from both old land and virgin soils. EM colonization was siginificantly suppressed in the presence of weeds. The data suggests that seedlings were predisposed by a stress factor in the presence of weeds rendering them more susceptible to pathogen infection. It is possible that poor EM colonisation in the presence of weeds rendered the seedlings more vulnerable to infection by soil born pathogens.
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