EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURAL SCIENCE, cilt.83, sa.2, ss.72-80, 2018 (SCI-Expanded)
It is necessary to know the nutrient requirement of citrus plants during the growing period to ensure optimal growth. As fertilizers are limited and expensive, in addition to the unknown long-term environmental aspect, it is good practice to use plant rhizosphere mechanisms, such as mycorrhizal inoculation, to enhance growth. As citrus plants depend on mycorrhizae colonization, it is beneficial to inoculate seedlings with mycorrhizae at an early stage. Thus, investigating citrus seedling quality and nutrition, with and without mycorrhizae, under greenhouse conditions is important in order to elucidate the impact of mycorrhizae in the eastern Mediterranean region. The aim of this study was to determine the role of mycorrhizal inoculation on citrus seedling growth, nutrient uptake and mycorrhizal dependency at specific time intervals. The experiments were set up under greenhouse conditions, using mycorrhiza-inoculated and non-inoculated sour orange seedlings grown over 15 months, which were harvested seven times.