Ectomycorrhizal fungi (EmF) form symbioses with trees. These symbioses profoundly influence forest ecology. Certain EmF form specialized profusions of hyphae, known as ectomycorrhizal fungal mats (mats) which are visible to the naked eye, alter forest soil biogeochemistry, substantially contribute to soil microbial biomass/respiration and support unique microbial communities. Piloderma and...
Total length and biomass of fungal mycelium in the soil of a young Douglas-fir stand in the central Oregon Coast Range were estimated over 27 months with the agar-film technique. In a second study, phenology and taxonomy of hypogeous (belowground) sporocarps were studied over 32 months in a nearby, young...
Sagebrush steppe ecosystems in the Great Basin have become increasingly threatened by the proliferation of cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum L.), an invasive annual grass. Diverse sagebrush and perennial bunchgrass landscapes can be converted to homogenous cheatgrass grasslands mainly through the effects of fire. Although the consequences of this conversion are well...
Soil food webs process the majority of terrestrial carbon, and influence overall ecosystem function. A primary distinction among soil food webs is based on fungal versus bacterial pathways of decomposition; these lead to fundamentally different soil function, and are expected to differ in dominance between meadows and forests. This assumption...
The mycorrhizal rootlets of Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco.) and red alder (Alnus rubra Bong.) were extensively investigated. A jet-black mycorrhiza was found to be dominant on Douglas-fir rootlets. The fungal symbiont was identified as Cenococcum graniforme (Sow.) Ferd. and Winge. Two forms of mycorrhizae predominated on root systems of...
Fuel accumulation and climate shifts are predicted to increase the frequency of high-severity fires in ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa Dougl. ex Laws) forests of central Oregon. The combustion of fuels containing large downed wood can result in intense soil heating, alteration of soil properties, and mortality of microbes. Previous studies...
Plant succession is among the fundamental concepts in ecology. Studies addressing plant recruitment, successional mechanisms, and the role of root-colonizing fungi with focus on dark-septate endophytes (DSE) were
conducted in the laboratory and on the forefront of receding Lyman Glacier (North Cascade Range, Washington, U.S.A.). Primary successional studies primarily focus...
Seedlings of Gaultheria shallon, Pseudotsuga menziesii, Rhododendron macrophyllum and Tsuga heterophylla were grown together in the greenhouse in soils from three young managed Douglas-fir forests in the Oregon Coast Range. The main objectives were 1 )to evaluate the ability of ericaceous plants and overstory conifers to share compatible mycorrhizal fungi...
We investigated the root endophytic fungi of lupine using
four approaches: (1) occurrence of fungal colonization in field-collected
roots; (2) growth response of L. latifolius to inoculation
with two types of fungi; (3) structure of root colonizations of
Pinus and Lupinus by Phialocephala fortinii, a septate endophytic
fungus of lupine;...