Summary
This study examined how EDTA soil washing affects arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal diversity and community structure in ryegrass grown on two contrasting soil types. The addition of a local environmental inoculant (indigenous grassland soil and root material) substantially recovered AM fungal richness and evenness in remediated soils, and reduced the compositional distance between remediated and unremediated communities. The findings suggest that indigenous inoculants represent a nature-based approach to restore soil fungal biodiversity following chemical remediation and other disturbances.
Regional applicability
The study does not specify a United Kingdom location in the metadata. However, the use of Lolium perenne (perennial ryegrass), focus on sustainable soil remediation, and emphasis on agricultural biodiversity restoration align closely with UK soil health and contaminated land policy priorities. Transferability depends on soil type and AM fungal community similarity between study and UK sites.
Key measures
18S rRNA amplicon sequencing of AM fungal communities; richness (Chao1 or similar); evenness; compositional dissimilarity (Bray-Curtis or similar); identity and relative abundance of dominant AM fungal taxa
Outcomes reported
The study measured arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungal community composition and structure in Lolium perenne roots using 18S rRNA amplicon sequencing across remediated and unremediated soils, with and without indigenous inoculant addition. The primary outcomes included AM fungal richness, evenness, compositional dissimilarity between treatments, and shifts in dominant taxa.
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