Abstract
Mycorrhizal fungi may play a role in the interactions between components of legume‐grass mixed swards by their enhancing effect on plant P uptake and on legume N 2 ‐fixation rate. The effects of mycorrhizal fungi on interspecific plant interactions and N transfer from legume to grass were studied in two legume‐grass forage mixtures grown under three P fertilization regimes. In two experiments, one involving an alfalfa‐bromegrass ( Medicago sativa L.‐ Bromus inermis Leyss.) mixture and the other, an alfalfa‐timothy ( Phleum pratense L.) mixture, plants were inoculated or not with Glomus intraradix and fertilized with 0, 14.2 or 28 kg P ha − 1. Phosphorus fertilization sometimes increased plant tissue P concentration, especially in timothy, but it never affected grass/legume biomass ratios. The effects of the mycorrhizal fungus were seasonal and were most evident in the August harvests, when mycorrhizal inoculation increased the yield of alfalfa at the expense of bromegrass or timothy, reducing the grass/legume dry mass ratio in both mixtures. Transfer of 15 N from legume to grass was demonstrated, but this transfer was not enhanced by mycorrhizal colonization of plants. Mycorrhizal colonization increased P accumulation in the alfalfa components of the mixtures (33% with bromegrass and 17% with timothy); however, P concentrations in the legume biomass were above the P sufficiency level in nonmycorrhizal plants and were not increased by mycorrhizal colonization. Therefore, the seasonal increase in alfalfa yield at the expense of the grass was apparently not caused by enhancement of P uptake by mycorrhizal colonization. Diagnosis and Recommendation Integrated System (DRIS) indices calculated from a complete nutrient analysis of the tissue revealed that the beneficial effect of mycorrhiza on alfalfa production was associated with a better nutrient balance (mainly Ca and Mg) of the plants.
Abstract from the paper’s OpenAlex record, shown for indexing and research. Copyright remains with the authors or the publisher. Read at the source ↗
The text the model read, with the source record’s inline markup (italics, sub- and superscripts) rendered and its character entities decoded; quote offsets refer to the raw text.
Claims 11
Claim · model-written summary
Phosphorus fertilization sometimes raised plant tissue phosphorus, particularly in timothy.
- Taxon
- timothy
Phleum pratensee0 - Treatment
- Phosphorus fertilizatione0
- Outcome
- plant tissue P concentratione0
- Direction
- increasede0
- Qualifier
- sometimese0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Phosphorus fertilization sometimes increased plant tissue P concentration, especially in timothy”
Claim · model-written summary
Phosphorus fertilization did not affect grass to legume biomass ratio.
- Taxon
- alfalfa
Medicago sativat0 - Treatment
- Phosphorus fertilizatione1
- Outcome
- grass/legume biomass ratiose0
- Direction
- never affectede0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“but it never affected grass/legume biomass ratios”
t0“alfalfa‐bromegrass ( Medicago sativa L.‐ Bromus inermis Leyss.) mixture”
e1“Phosphorus fertilization sometimes increased plant tissue P concentration, especially in timothy”
Claim · model-written summary
Mycorrhizal inoculation increased alfalfa yield in August harvests.
- Taxon
- alfalfaMedicago sativae0
- Treatment
- mycorrhizal inoculatione0
- Interactor
- bromegrass or timothye0other
- Outcome
- yield of alfalfae0
- Direction
- increasede0
- Qualifier
- August harvestse0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“in the August harvests, when mycorrhizal inoculation increased the yield of alfalfa at the expense of bromegrass or timothy”
Claim · model-written summary
Mycorrhizal inoculation reduced the grass to legume dry mass ratio.
- Taxon
- alfalfaMedicago sativat0
- Treatment
- mycorrhizal inoculatione1
- Outcome
- grass/legume dry mass ratioe0
- Direction
- reducinge0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“reducing the grass/legume dry mass ratio in both mixtures”
t0“alfalfa‐bromegrass ( Medicago sativa L.‐ Bromus inermis Leyss.) mixture”
e1“in the August harvests, when mycorrhizal inoculation increased the yield of alfalfa at the expense of bromegrass or timothy”
Claim · model-written summary
Nitrogen transferred from legume to grass.
Verbatim
e0“Transfer of 15 N from legume to grass was demonstrated”
Claim · model-written summary
Mycorrhizal colonization did not enhance nitrogen transfer.
Not reportedComparator
Verbatim
e0“this transfer was not enhanced by mycorrhizal colonization of plants”
t0“legume”
Claim · model-written summary
Mycorrhizal colonization increased alfalfa phosphorus accumulation by 33% with bromegrass.
- Taxon
- alfalfaMedicago sativae0
- Treatment
- Mycorrhizal colonizatione0
- Interactor
- bromegrasse0other
- Outcome
- P accumulatione0
- Direction
- increasede0
- Value
- 33%e0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Mycorrhizal colonization increased P accumulation in the alfalfa components of the mixtures (33% with bromegrass and 17% with timothy)”
Claim · model-written summary
Mycorrhizal colonization increased alfalfa phosphorus accumulation by 17% with timothy.
- Taxon
- alfalfaMedicago sativae0
- Treatment
- Mycorrhizal colonizatione0
- Interactor
- timothyPhleum pratensee0other
- Outcome
- P accumulatione0
- Direction
- increasede0
- Value
- 17%e0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Mycorrhizal colonization increased P accumulation in the alfalfa components of the mixtures (33% with bromegrass and 17% with timothy)”
Claim · model-written summary
Alfalfa phosphorus concentrations were sufficient without mycorrhiza and did not increase under colonization.
Verbatim
e0“P concentrations in the legume biomass were above the P sufficiency level in nonmycorrhizal plants and were not increased by mycorrhizal colonization”
Claim · model-written summary
Alfalfa yield gains were apparently not caused by enhanced phosphorus uptake.
- Taxon
- alfalfaMedicago sativae0
- Treatment
- mycorrhizal colonizatione0
- Outcome
- seasonal increase in alfalfa yielde0
- Qualifier
- apparently not caused by enhancement of P uptakee0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the seasonal increase in alfalfa yield at the expense of the grass was apparently not caused by enhancement of P uptake by mycorrhizal colonization”
Claim · model-written summary
Beneficial mycorrhizal effects on alfalfa production were associated with better nutrient balance.
- Taxon
- alfalfaMedicago sativae0
- Treatment
- mycorrhizae0
- Outcome
- alfalfa productione0
- Qualifier
- better nutrient balance (mainly Ca and Mg)e0
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the beneficial effect of mycorrhiza on alfalfa production was associated with a better nutrient balance (mainly Ca and Mg) of the plants”
The same questions in other papers
inoculation · yield · Medicago sativa (alfalfa)Results differ
61 papers in the same direction as this paper · 7 in the opposite direction
- no effect
- no effect
- no effect
65 papers more in this group
See all 69 papers →fertilization · growth · Medicago sativa (alfalfa)Results differ
17 papers in the same direction as this paper · 71 in the opposite direction
- positive
- positive
- positive
85 papers more in this group
See all 89 papers →infection · nutrient: content · Medicago sativa (alfalfa)Positive and negative results
4 papers in the same direction as this paper · 1 in the opposite direction
- no effect
- positive
- positive
2 papers more in this group
See all 6 papers →mycorrhiza · yield · Medicago sativa (alfalfa)Positive and negative results
15 papers in the same direction as this paper · 1 in the opposite direction
- no effect
- positive
- positive
13 papers more in this group
See all 17 papers →mycorrhiza · nutrient: content · Medicago sativa (alfalfa)Positive and negative results
17 papers in the same direction as this paper · 1 in the opposite direction
- negative
- positive
- positive
15 papers more in this group
See all 19 papers →mycorrhiza · growth · Medicago sativa (alfalfa)Positive and negative results
34 papers in the same direction as this paper · 2 in the opposite direction
- positive
- negative
- no effect
33 papers more in this group
See all 37 papers →inoculation · growth · Medicago sativa (alfalfa)Positive and negative results
120 papers in the same direction as this paper · 15 in the opposite direction · 1 reporting no difference from an alternative
- positive
- positive
- no effect
133 papers more in this group
See all 137 papers →fertilization · nutrient: content · Phleum pratense (timothy)Results agree
4 papers in the same direction as this paper
- positive
- positive
- positive
1 paper more in this group
See all 5 papers →Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.