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Plant-mycorrhizal fungi associations along an urbanization gradient: implications for tree seedling survival

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Abstract

Mycorrhizal fungi symbioses can be critical determining if established seedlings survive or not. Currently, in remnant forests, plants and their fungal symbionts are exposed to varied anthropomorphic effects related to urbanization, however, little is known about their impact on this association. We investigated the relationship between mycorrhizal fungi and tree seedling survival along an urbanization gradient. We planted three species of temperate tree seedlings (Acer rubrum, Carya ovata, and Quercus rubra) in three landscapes: urban, suburban, and rural. We measured the percent of root length colonized by mycorrhizal fungi and monitored survival during their first growing season. We analyzed mycorrhizal colonization as a function of landscape type (urban-rural) and additional variables known to contribute to mycorrhizal colonization (phosphorus, nitrogen, initial plant height). We then analyzed seedling survival as a function of the degree of mycorrhizal fungi colonization associated with the landscape gradient and of additional environmental factors (light and soil moisture). Within a species we found no changes in the levels of mycorrhizal fungi colonization across the urbanization gradient. Each species, however, had markedly different levels of colonization. Survival of A. rubrum was independent of mycorrhizal colonization, while C. ovata and Q. rubra had a significant positive response to increased mycorrhizal fungi. These findings highlight the resilience of mycorrhizal communities across the rural-urban gradient typical of this region, but they also underscore the potential sensitivity of some tree species to lower levels of mycorrhizal fungi colonization.

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Acknowledgements

Funding was provided by the National Science Foundation to I. Ibáñez (award No.: DEB 1252664).

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  1. School of Natural Resources and Environment, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA

    Natalie Tonn & Inés Ibáñez

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  1. Natalie Tonn
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  2. Inés Ibáñez
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Correspondence to Inés Ibáñez.

Appendix

Appendix

Table 2 Seed sources
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Table 3 Soil nutrient information by plot. Soil nutrient amounts are in parts per million of extracted solution (ppm in extracted solution, 50 ml 2 M HCl). Soil Nutrient data collected in Unibest capsules and analyzed by Unibest International
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Model code

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Table 4 Parameter values from the mycorrhizal fungi colonization analysis
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Fig. 6
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Observed survival along the studied landscape-canopy site combinations

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Fig. 7
figure 7

Mycorrhizal colonization per plot versus plot survival. Dots indicate data, lines are predictions

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Table 5 Parameter values from the seedling survival colonization analysis
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Tonn, N., Ibáñez, I. Plant-mycorrhizal fungi associations along an urbanization gradient: implications for tree seedling survival. Urban Ecosyst 20, 823–837 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11252-016-0630-5

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