Mycorrhization affects the morpho-physiological traits and rhizosphere proprieties of three lucerne cultivars (Medicago sativa L.) in phosphorus-deficient situations

In both alkaline and acidic soils, phosphorus, an essential element for plants, reacts with the soil solution and becomes immobile and unavailable to plants. The study aims to use arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) as an alternative method for solubilising phosphorus and to evaluate the effect of mycorrhization on the response of three cultivars of Medicago sativa L. to phosphorus deficiency. For this purpose, plants were used in two regimens: with or without mycorrhizal inoculum and with or without phosphorus amendments. The effects of mycorrhizae on the mineral nutrition, growth parameters of plants, and the rhizosphere's chemical properties were evaluated. The results showed that phosphorus deficiency negatively affected growth parameters. For all cultivars, the lowest values were recorded in mycorrhized-free plants regardless of phosphorus supply. In contrast, the mycorrhizal plants that got phosphorus intakes recorded the most significant nutritional metrics and growth parameters values except for root length, where the highest values were recorded in uninoculated control plants that did not receive phosphoric amendment. The shortest roots were recorded in mycorrhized plants growing on P-amended soil. Phosphorus supplementation with mycorrhizal fungi inoculation also improved soil fertility, increasing the amount of available phosphorus and adjusting the pH values.