Mycorrhizae : The Friendly Fungus

Imagine a sprawling underground network-invisible to the human eye- that would allow your neighbor’s apple tree across the street to share nutrients with the tomato plants growing in your backyard. It’s real, and made possible by a beneficial soil fungi call mycorrhizae.

Scientists believe that mycorrhizae are one of the main reasons plants were able to make the transition from sea to land millions of years ago – helping plants make the drastic transition from nutrient rich ocean life to a harsh, salty land environment.

Mycorrhizae work by creating an extensive network of microscopic filaments that allows nutrient transfer among plants.  They penetrate growing plant root tissues, surround the root mass, and extend far into the surrounding soil, encompassing a much larger volume of soil than is occupied by the plant’s own root system. The fungi’s long threadlike mycelia take in nitrogen, phosphorous, and other nutrients from the soil, consuming some but also generously sharing these nutrients with the host plant.  In return, the plant provides the mycorrhizal fungi with photosynthesized nutrients like sucrose, fructose, and glucose.

While helping plant roots absorb more nutrients, mycorrhizae also improve drought tolerance, and help create ideal soil structure ; aerated soil with good drainage that maintains optimum moisture levels.  The much sought after crumbly, black loam soil texture is the result, in part, of the presence of long term mycorrizal activity. Their long hair like  filaments called hyphae accumulate in the soil over time, and bind larger, sand sized,  soil particles together, helping create friable, high quality soil.