The Earth’s population is projected to rise to 9.7 billion by 2050 resulting in mounting pressure to increase agricultural yields in a sustainable manner. Arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi may be important players in this agricultural transition given their capacity to improve soil and plant health. Benefits gained by crops hosting AM fungi can be cultivar-specific and also affected by insect herbivory, although the combined effect of these factors remains unclear. Here, we show that, in an economically and socially significant tri-partite system, there is interplay between crop cultivar, AM colonisation and aphid herbivory on plant growth and nutritional status.
This article was published in Plants, People, and Planet. Read the full original article here.
