Sarah Brown
Mushrooms are the fruit of fungi, and some types of fungi form symbiotic relationships with plants. This symbiotic relationship is called mycorrhiza, and it involves the fungi colonising the roots of a plant, improving the plant's ability to absorb water and nutrients. In exchange, the plant provides the fungus with carbohydrates produced through photosynthesis. Mycorrhizal relationships are ancient, potentially as old as the terrestrialisation of plants, and are found in around 70% of plant species, including many crop plants. Some types of mycorrhiza include ectomycorrhiza, where the fungi wrap their hyphae around the plant roots but do not penetrate the root cells, and endomycorrhiza, where the fungi grow into and branch within the plant's root cells.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Definition | Mycorrhiza is a symbiotic association between a green plant and a fungus. |
| Types | Ectomycorrhiza, Endomycorrhiza, Ericoid mycorrhizae, Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi |
| Participants | Mushrooms, Fungi, Plants, Trees, Orchids, Roots, etc. |
| Benefits | The fungus improves the host plant's absorption of water and nutrients. The host plant provides the fungus with carbohydrates produced through photosynthesis. |
| Examples | Golden chanterelles, King boletes, Hen-of-the-Woods, Morels, Oysters |
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What You'll Learn
Mycorrhiza: the symbiotic relationship between fungi and plants
Mycorrhiza is a symbiotic association between a green plant and a fungus. The term 'mycorrhiza' is used to describe fungi associated with the root systems of many plants, including trees, shrubs, groundcovers, and grasses. The relationship is mutually symbiotic, meaning that both members benefit.
In this relationship, the plant supplies the fungus with sugars or lipids, which are products of photosynthesis. In return, the fungus provides the plant with water and mineral nutrients, such as phosphorus and nitrogen, which are taken from the soil. This exchange effectively increases the absorptive surface area of the plant's root system, allowing plants to take up the water and nutrients they need to grow better and more quickly.
Mycorrhizas are located in the roots of vascular plants, but mycorrhiza-like associations also occur in bryophytes, and fossil evidence suggests that early land plants that lacked roots formed arbuscular mycorrhizal associations. Most plant species form mycorrhizal associations, though some families, like Brassicaceae and Chenopodiaceae, do not. The most common type of mycorrhiza, the arbuscular type, is present in 70% of plant species, including many crop plants such as cereals and legumes.
There are five different types of mycorrhizas, and two of these are particularly important in Australian ecosystems. The first type is called "ectomycorrhiza", where fungi wrap their hyphae (long, very fine hair-like structures that contact the soil) around the plant roots but do not penetrate the root cells. The second type is "endomycorrhiza", where fungi grow into the plant root, penetrating and branching within the root cells to form what look like little, microscopic trees. This is an extremely intimate relationship between different types of organisms.
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Ectomycorrhiza: fungi wrap around plant roots
Mushrooms are symbiotic. Mycorrhiza is the name for fungi associated with the root systems of many plants, including trees, shrubs, groundcovers, and grasses. This symbiotic relationship between a green plant and a fungus involves the plant supplying sugars or lipids to the fungus, which are produced through photosynthesis. In exchange, the fungus provides the plant with water and mineral nutrients, such as phosphorus, taken from the soil.
Ectomycorrhizas, or EcM, are a type of mycorrhiza where the fungi wrap their hyphae (long, very fine hair-like structures that contact the soil) around the plant roots underground but do not penetrate the root cells. This type of mycorrhiza is found in around 10% of plant families, mostly woody plants, including the birch, dipterocarp, eucalyptus, oak, pine, and rose families, orchids, and fungi belonging to the Basidiomycota, Ascomycota, and Zygomycota.
Ectomycorrhizae associate with relatively few plant species, only about 2% of plant species on Earth. However, the species they associate with are mostly trees and woody plants that are highly dominant in their ecosystems. This means that plants in ectomycorrhizal relationships make up a large proportion of plant biomass.
Some EcM fungi, such as many Leccinum and Suillus, are symbiotic with only one particular genus of plant. For example, American slippery jack (Suillus americanus) grows in symbiosis with only Eastern white pines (Pinus strobus). In contrast, other fungi, such as the Amanita, are generalists that form mycorrhizas with many different plants. An individual tree may have 15 or more different fungal EcM partners at one time.
Ectomycorrhizas are one of the two main types of mycorrhizas, along with endomycorrhizas, and they are particularly important in Australian ecosystems.
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Endomycorrhiza: fungi grow into and branch within plant roots
Mycorrhiza is a symbiotic association between a green plant and a fungus. The relationship is mutually beneficial, with both members gaining advantages. The primary role of mycorrhizas is to provide resources such as phosphorus and nitrogen to flowering plants. They also increase the absorptive surface area of the plant's root system, allowing plants to absorb more water and nutrients, thus enabling them to grow better and faster. In exchange, the plants provide carbohydrates, which are a product of photosynthesis, to the fungi.
There are five different types of mycorrhizas, and two of these are particularly important in Australian ecosystems. One of these types is ectomycorrhiza, where the fungi wrap their hyphae (long, very fine hair-like structures that contact the soil) around the plant roots but do not penetrate the root cells.
The other type is called endomycorrhiza, where fungi grow into and branch within the plant roots. This is a highly intimate relationship between two different types of organisms. In endomycorrhiza, the fungi penetrate and branch within the root cells, forming what appear to be microscopic trees.
Endomycorrhizal fungi, also known as "fine root endophytes" (MFREs), were previously misidentified as arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. While they share similar characteristics with AMF, they differ in their ability to survive without a host. MFREs can survive independently and are often found in wet, acidic soils, forming symbiotic relationships with liverworts, hornworts, lycophytes, and angiosperms.
Overall, the endomycorrhiza relationship is a fascinating example of the ancient and intimate association between fungi and plants, showcasing the diverse and beneficial partnerships that have shaped life on Earth.
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Orchid mycorrhizae: orchids rely on fungi to survive
Mycorrhizae are symbiotic associations between a green plant and a fungus. Mycorrhizas are located in the roots of vascular plants, but mycorrhiza-like associations also occur in bryophytes. Fossil and genetic evidence indicate that mycorrhizas are ancient, potentially as old as the terrestrialization of plants.
Orchid mycorrhizae (OM) are a type of mycorrhizae where orchids form symbiotic associations with fungi. Orchids make up 10% of the world's plant species. Orchids lacking chlorophyll, called achlorophyllous mycoheterotrophs, retain their fungal symbionts their entire lives, relying on the fungus for carbon. Orchid seeds are so small that they contain no nutrition to sustain the germinating seedling, and instead, the energy to grow comes from their fungal symbiont. Orchid germination and development into protocorms rely on fungal symbionts, which decrease the time of germination and increase the vigor of the protocorm.
The symbiotic relationship between orchids and fungi is mutually beneficial. In a typical arbuscular mycorrhizal interaction, the plant supplies the fungus with carbon in exchange for phosphorus or nitrogen. Orchid mycorrhizal nutrient transfer is less specific and there is often a bidirectional flow of carbon and nitrogen between the fungus and plant. Orchid mycorrhizal fungi also secrete siderophores into the soil to aid in the acquisition of iron.
Research has been conducted to identify the genes involved in the function of orchid mycorrhizas to better understand how plants and fungi interact to form functional mycorrhizal associations. The Palau Orchid Conservation Initiative aims to determine how ecological and environmental variables influence orchid diversity and distributions to develop effective conservation strategies.
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Mutual benefits: how do plants and fungi help each other?
Mushrooms are the fruit of fungi, and many types of fungi form symbiotic relationships with plants. This symbiosis is called mycorrhiza, and it involves the fungi associating with the root systems of plants. Mycorrhizas are present in the roots of most vascular plants, and fossil evidence suggests that they are ancient, potentially as old as the terrestrialisation of plants.
There are five different types of mycorrhizas, and two of these are particularly important in Australian ecosystems. The first type is called "ectomycorrhiza", where fungi wrap their hyphae (long, very fine hair-like structures that contact the soil) around the plant roots but do not penetrate the root cells. The second type is called "endomycorrhiza", where fungi grow into the plant root, penetrating and branching within the root cells to form what look like microscopic trees. Other types of mycorrhizas include ericoid mycorrhizae, which involve only plants in Ericales, and arbuscular mycorrhizae, which are present in 70% of plant species.
In a mycorrhizal relationship, the plant and fungus mutually benefit each other. The plant provides the fungus with carbohydrates produced through photosynthesis, while the fungus supplies the plant with water and mineral nutrients, such as phosphorus and nitrogen, taken from the soil. This increases the absorptive surface area of the plant's root system, allowing the plant to take up more water and nutrients, resulting in better and faster growth.
Some highly prized edible mushrooms, such as golden chanterelles and king boletes, are mycorrhizal fungi. These mushrooms have specific preferences for their symbiotic partners. For example, golden chanterelles are often found in pine forests or under other conifers, while king boletes are commonly associated with spruce, pine, birch, and oak trees.
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Frequently asked questions
Mycorrhiza is a symbiotic association between a green plant and a fungus.
The fungus supplies the plant with water and mineral nutrients, such as phosphorus and nitrogen, taken from the soil. It also increases the absorptive surface area of the plant's root system, allowing the plant to take up more water and nutrients, thus growing better and faster.
In exchange for the above, the plant provides the fungus with carbohydrates, or sugars, produced through photosynthesis.
Some edible mushrooms, such as golden chanterelles and king boletes, are mycorrhizal fungi. You're most likely to find king boletes under spruce, pine, birch, and oak trees. Another example is the toadstool fly agaric or Amanita muscaria, which forms mycorrhizal associations with many conifers, as well as oaks.
Yes, there are five different types of mycorrhizas, two of which are particularly important in Australian ecosystems. One type is called "ectomycorrhiza", where fungi wrap their hyphae around the plant roots but don't penetrate the root cells. The other type is called "endomycorrhiza", where fungi grow into the plant root, penetrating and branching within the root cells.
