Mycorrhizal infection and plant growth of highbush blueberry in fumigated soil following soil amendment and inoculation with mycorrhizal fungi

A field trial was conducted to investigate the effectiveness of soil fumiga tion on maintaining nonmycorrhizal status and the effect of mycorrhizal ino culation and preplant soil amendment on the growth of tissue-cultured highb ush blueberry plants, Soil fumigation using a methyl bromide/chloropicrin ( 67/33) mixture at the rate of 560 kg.ha(-1) was effective in maintaining no nmycorrhizal status for one growing season. Noninoculated control plants be came infected during the second growing season. Field inoculation using a n ative Oidiodendron maius was successful, but plant growth was not significa ntly affected by mycorrhizal inoculation in either year. Rotted sawdust ame ndment, however, reduced plant growth in the first year but effects were no longer measurable in the second gear. Soil fumigation and field inoculatio n could be used to establish mycorrhizal plants and nonmycorrhizal controls for future short-term field experiments.