Effects of Mycorrhiza on the Growth and Productivity of Faidherbia albida (Del.) A. Chev

Abstract

The effects of mycorrhiza on growth and growth components of Faidherbia albida (Del.) A. Chev. was investigated in the semi arid environment of Sokoto State, Nigeria. A complete randomized block design with five replications and factorial combination of three watering regimes (daily for unstressed plant, twice weekly for partially stressed plants and once a week for moisture stressed plants) and three mycorrhizal treatments namely; endomycorrhizal plants, ectomycorrhizal plants and non mycorrhizal plants were used. Both the ecto and endo mycorrhizae enhanced morphological features of the plant including height, basal diameter, leaf number, leaf area, root length and dry weights as well as its moisture utilization efficiency. Therefore, the use of mycorrhiza is recommended for sustained production of high-grade seedlings of the apple ring acacia in the semi arid environment.

KEYWORDS: Faidherbia albida, mycorrhiza, morphology, moisture stress