RA3 THESIS: Effect of phosphite on arbuscular ...

Assessing the effect of phosphite treatment on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal colonisation in kauri (Agathis australis)

2022

Patterson HR. 2022. Assessing the effect of phosphite treatment on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal colonisation in kauri (Agathis australis). Unpublished Honours thesis, University of Auckland.

NOTE:

This thesis is not publicly available online. For further information please contact supervisor, Dr. Luitgard Schwendenmann at the University of Auckland (l.schwendenmann@auckland.ac.nz)

A poster presented at the New Zealand Ecological Society Conference, University of Otago, November 2022 has been provided.

ABSTRACT

Kauri (Agathis australis) is a keystone New Zealand tree species. Kauri are also a taonga species with an integral place in Māori culture. Kauri are threatened by Phytophthora agathidicida, an oomycete that causes kauri dieback. Currently, phosphite is the treatment used to manage the disease, and although it is an effective short-term treatment, it is not a cure. There is little research on the effect of phosphite on the arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), which exist in a symbiotic relationship with kauri roots. AMF are integral for kauri survival in low-nutrient soil. This study investigates the effect of phosphite on AMF in the root nodules of kauri trees.