Co-inoculation of Acacia mangium with Glomus intraradices and Bradyrhizobium sp. in aeroponic culture

Acacia mangium grown in aeroponic culture was co-inoculated with selected strains of Bradyrhizobium sp. and Glomus intraradices. A single-step technique using alginate as an embedding and sticking agent for an inoculum composed of arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM)-infected sheared roots was used to infect plants. This method resulted in the successful establishment of AM in 100% of the inoculated plants after 7 weeks. The results indicated that dual microbial inoculation with Glomus intraradices strain S-043 and Bradyrhizobium strain AUST 13C stimulated the growth of A. mangium in aeroponic culture. The effects of single and dual microbial inoculations were also evaluated at two levels of P in the nutrient medium. A concentration of 5 mg P kg-1 stimulated the development of AM without affecting plant development or establishment of Bradyrhizobium symbiosis. In contrast, saplings supplemented with a higher concentration of P (25 mg kg-1) alone or co-inoculated with Bradyrhizobium had lower AM frequencies.