Colonization and Diversity of AM Fungi by Morphological Analysis on Medicinal Plants in Southeast China

The arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungal distributions in the rhizosphere of 20 medicinal plants species in Zhangzhou, southeast China, were studied. The results showed 66 species of 8 genera of AM fungi were identified, of which 38 belonged to Glomus, 12 to Acaulospora, 9 to Scutellospora, 2 to Gigaspora, 2 to Funneliformis, 1 to Septoglomus, 1 to Rhizophagus, and 1 to Archaeospora. Glomus was the dominant genera and G. melanosporum, Acaulospora scrobiculata, G. etunicatum, Funneliformis mosseae, and G. rubiforme were the prevalent species. The highest colonization (100%) was recorded in Desmodium pulchellum (L.) Benth. while the lowest (8.0%) was in Acorus tatarinowii Schott. The AM fungi spore density ranged from 270 to 2860 per 100 g soil (average 1005), and the species richness ranged from 3 to 14 (average 9.7) per soil sample. Shannon-Wiener index ranged from 0.52 to 2 (average 1.45). In the present study, the colonization had a highly negative correlation with available K and electrical conductivity. Species richness correlated positively with electrical conductivity and organic matter. Shannon-Wiener index had a highly significant negative correlation with pH. This study provides a valuable germplasm and theoretical basis for AM fungal biotechnology on medicinal standardization planting.