Colonización de hongos micorrizicos en raíces de mortiño (Vaccinium floribundum Kunth) en los páramos de Ganquis y Cubillín en la provincia de Chimborazo.

Abstract

The objective of this research was to determine the colonization of mycorrhizal fungi on roots of mortiño (Vaccinium floribundum Kunth) in the moorlands of Ganquis and Cubillín in the Chimborazo province. Five random soil samples of approximately 1 kg each were collected for each locality. The percentage of root colonization was estimated by microscopic observation of roots according to Phillips and Hayman's methodology, for the separation and quantification of spores, the centrifugation method and the quadrat method were used, for the identification of morpho-types of mycorrhizal fungi, the keys and descriptions presented by Schenk and Pérez and the INVAM web page (International Culture Collection of Vesicular Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi) were used, taking into account morphological features such as the shape, color, and texture of the wall. The percentage of colonization obtained in the Ganquis moor was 28.2%, while in Cubillín it was 43.6%, the number of spores found in the Ganquis moor was a total of 6300 spores/100g of soil and in the Cubillín moor, a total of 7300 spores/100g of soil, and the morphotypes of mycorrhizal fungi identified in the Ganquis moor were six belonging to the genus Glomus and Archaeospora, while in the Cubillín moor ten morphotypes belonging to the genera Glomus and Acaulospora were found. The highest percentage of colonization in roots and the number of soil spores were found in the locality of Cubillín. It is recommended to conduct a molecular identification of mycorrhizal fungal species associated with the rhizosphere of mortiño (Vaccinium floribundum Kunth).