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Harvard Forest Symposium Abstract 2006
- Title: Impacts of the invasion of garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata) on forest fungi
- Primary Author: Benjamin Wolfe (Harvard University)
- Additional Authors: John Klironomos (University of Guelph); Anne Pringle (University of Wisconsin - Madison); Vikki Rodgers (Boston University); Kristina Stinson (University of Massachusetts - Amherst )
- Abstract:
Many invasive plant species have been shown to alter the structure and function of aboveground plant communities, but less is known about the impacts of plant invasions on the structure and function of soil communities. Plants that should have the most pronounced impacts on soil communities include species with traits that are novel to the invaded community. Garlic mustard (Alliaria petiolata), a European plant species that has invaded many forests in North America, produces antifungal compounds that are not found in most other forest understory species in Eastern North America. Previous work in Ontario and at the Harvard Forest has shown that garlic mustard decreases the abundance of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi, which are root symbionts of many deciduous trees and herbaceous plants species in forests of Eastern North America. Decreases in AM fungal abundance caused by the presence of garlic mustard were associated with decreases in plant growth. Research during the 2006 field season will test the effects of garlic mustard on ectomycorrhizal fungi, which are symbionts of most conifers and oaks in Eastern North America and play important roles in forest biogeochemical processes. Garlic mustard may also impact other functionally significant forest fungi, such as saprotrophic fungi that contribute to the decomposition or organic matter in forests.
- Research Category: Invasive Plants, Pests & Pathogens
