Parasitism Shifts the Effects of Native Soil Microbes on the Growth of the Invasive Plant Alternanthera philoxeroides.

ABSTRACT: Soil microbes play an important role in plant invasion, and parasitic plants regulate the growth of invasive plants. However, the mechanisms by which parasitic plants regulate the effects of soil microbes on invasive plants have not been investigated. Here, we used the invasive plant Alternanthera philoxeroides and the holoparasitic plant Cuscuta grovonii to test whether and how C. grovonii parasitism shifts the effect of native soil microbes on the growth of A. philoxeroides. In a factorial setup, A. philoxeroides was grown in pots with the presence versus absence of parasitism and the presence versus absence of native soil microbes. The findings showed that native soil microbes increased the biomass and clonal growth of A. philoxeroides only in t

SUBMITTER: Cai C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9863507 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature