Cost of inoculating seedlings with Pisolithus tinctorius spores

David B. South
David B. South

Published: 01.12.2017.

Volume 0, Issue 5 (2018)

pp. 33-53;

https://doi.org/10.21750/refor.5.06.52

Abstract

Although the production of commercial products of vegetative Pt (Pisolithus tinctorius (Pers.) Coker & Couch) inoculums has ceased in North America due to a lack of demand by consumers, the number of products that contain Pt spores has increased.  The quality, quantity and price of these products vary considerably.  The cost of inoculating 1,000 tree seedlings with Pt basidiospores can vary from $0.45 to more than $30.  The cost of treating with Pt spores is lowest when seedlings are inoculated in a container nursery using rates that are less than 0.4 mg per seedling.  However, with some products the cost to treat 1,000 bareroot seedlings is greater than $500 when spores are applied in the planting hole.  Three decades ago, 1 g of Pt spores could be purchased for $0.13 and now the price of 1 g can exceed $14. Although many research papers provide data on the biological response to inoculating seedlings with spores, few document the cost of inoculation. Commercial products that are marketed toward homeowners containing both ectomycorrhizal and endomycorrhizal spores are more expensive than products that contain only ectomycorrhizal spores.  In situations where survival and growth of seedlings are not increased, the benefit/cost ratio will typically be less than one.

References

Alvarez, I., & Trappe, J. (1983b). Effects of application rate and cold soaking pretreatment of Pisolithus spores on effectiveness as nursery inoculums on western conifers. Can J Forest Res, 3, 533–537.
Alvarez, I., & Trappe, J. (1983a). Dusting roots of Abies concolor and other conifers with Pisolithus tinctorius spores at outplanting time proves ineffective. Can J Forest Res, 5, 1021–1023.
Amaranthus, M., & Perry, D. (1987). Effect of soil transfer on ectomycorrhiza formation and the growth and survival of conifer seedlings on old, nonreforested clearcuts. Can J Forest Res, 8, 944–951.
Ambriz, E., Báez-Pérez, A., Sánchez-Yáñez, J., Moutoglis, P., & Villegas, J. (2010). Fraxinus-Glomus-Pisolithus symbiosis: plant growth and soil aggregation effects. Pedobiologia, 6, 369–373.
Anonymous. (2014). Trees: from nursery to independence in the landscape -recommendations. 90.

Citation

Copyright

Article metrics

Google scholar: See link

The statements, opinions and data contained in the journal are solely those of the individual authors and contributors and not of the publisher and the editor(s). We stay neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Most read articles