The combined effects of fungicides and arbuscular Mycorrhiza on corn (Zea mays L.) growth and yield under field conditions

Abstract

With respect to the significance of the combined effects of fungicides application and Arbuscular Mycorrhizal fungi on the growth and yield of different crop plants such as coni (Zea mays L.) a field experiment was conducted. The objectives were to determine: (1) the combined effects of different fungicides and different arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM) species on the growth and yield of corn and (2) the efficiency of different AM species in symbiosis with corn plants, treated by different fungicides, under field conditions. Four AM treatments including control (M0), Glomus mosseae (M1), G. etunicatum (M2) and G. intraradices (M3) and four fungicide treatments including control (F0), benomyl (F1), vitavax (F2) and captan (F3) were tested in a factorial fashion on the basis of a completely randomized block design in three replicates in 2006. Different species of AM significantly affected corn growth and yield when subjected to different fungicides treatments. G. mosseae and corn plants established the most efficient symbiosis. In addition, fungicide benomyl had the least unfavorable effects on the colonization of corn roots by AM species. Determination of the appropriate rates of fungicides for treating seeds to alleviate the unfavorable effects of fungicides on plant growth, especially when in symbiosis with AM species, is of great significance. © 2009 Asian Network for Scientific Information.