Association of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi with plants of coastal sand dunes of west coast of India

An inventory of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungal status of 28 plant species belonging to 14 families established on the coastal sand dunes of southwest coast of India was performed. Roots of 23 plant species were colonized by AM fungi, whereas the rhizosphere of only 20 plant species possessed AM fungal spores. Canavalia cathartica had the highest root colonization (83%) by AM, while the rhizosphere of Borreria articularis had the highest number of AM spores (1.6 g¹). Among 30 AM fungi recovered, Scutellospora erythropa showed a wide host range (colonized 13 plant species), while Scutellospora gregaria had high spore abundance per plant species (12.75). The mean species richness on the west coast dunes was 4.4, highest being in Ipomoea pes-caprae (11). Among the mat-forming creepers, the AM fungal diversity was highest in Alysicarpus rugosus.