Mycorrhizae and Drought Stress in New Urban Plantings

2007 | Grant Jones and Bal Rao, Davey Institute
A reduced root system and difficult site conditions often lead to drought stress, which is a common problem for plant health practitioners when transplanting trees in urban environments. Major objectives of this research: (1) quantify relationship between mycorrhizae and plant-water relations during the first two years following transplanting by carbon isotope analysis and measuring pre-dawn water potential and soil moisture content; (2) quantify overall plant health by measuring caliper, tree height and width, leaf size and color and shoot growth; (3) determine the susceptibility of trees to biotic and abiotic plant disorders when mycorrhizae are and are not incorporated at the time of planting; (4) compare treatment response between endomycorrhizae and ectomycorrhizae host species.

Year: 2007

Funding Duration: 1-3 years

Grant Program: John Z Duling

Grant Title: Mycorrhizae and Drought Stress in New Urban Plantings

Researcher: Grant Jones

Key words: Mycorrhizae; plant water relations; drought stress; transplanting

Peer Reviewed Publications: None

General Audience/Trade Publications:

• Jones, G. and B. Rao. 2008. Challenges in establishing newly transplanted trees. TREE Fund Newsletter. Oct 2008: 6-7.
• Jones, G. and B. Rao. 2008. Challenges in establishing newly transplanted trees. Buckeye Arborists. 39: 1, 14.

Presentations:

• Jones, G. and B. Rao. Mycorrhizae and drought stress in new urban plantings. 2009. International Society of Arboriculture Conference and Trade Show. Providence, RI. July 25-29, 2009

For more information on this project, contact the researcher via TREE Fund at treefund@treefund.org.