Application of mycorrhizae in sustainable date palm cultivation

Abstract

Date palm (Phoenix dactylifera) is a significant and developing crop especially in the Arabian Peninsula, the Middle East and North Africa regions. The area under cultivation of this tree is increasing annually. Date palms usually grown under harsh and unfavorable growing conditions with low rainfall and high rates of evaporation as well as in soils with low organic matter and nutrient deficiencies. Hence, date palm cultivation becomes dependent on application of high levels of fertilizers as well as on irrigation. This may lead to salinization of soil and leaching of nutrients to deep soils that might affect ground water. Therefore, it is important that date palm plantations are managed in a sustainable way to reduce the impact of date palm cultivation on ecosystems while maximizing dates yield through using such practices as mycorrhizal fungi technology. The application of mycorrhizal fungi technology is an option that can benefit both agronomic plant health and ecosystems. Mycorrhizae confer numerous benefits to host plants including improved plant growth and mineral nutrition, water uptake, tolerance to diseases and stresses such as drought, temperature fluctuation, metal toxicity and salinity. Mycorrhizae may also play a role in the formation of stable soil aggregates, building up a macro porous structure of soil that allows penetration of water and air and prevents erosion. All of these beneficial effects on plant health and soil fitness mean that mycorrhizae have the potential to increase agricultural productivity and are crucial for the sustainable functioning of agricultural ecosystems. This study provides an insight into the application of mycorrhizae in date palm cultivation.

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi promote coexistence and niche divergence of sympatric palm species on a remote oceanic island

“…In exchange for carbohydrates, the fungi provide the associated plant with resources such as phosphate and nitrogen. The presence or absence of AMF is therefore probably key to plant fitness, including in palms (Moora et al ., ; Al‐Karaki, ). Thus, the reduction in AMF in H. forsteriana on volcanic soil may place it at a substantial disadvantage compared with H. belmoreana .…”

Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Communities in the Roots of Sago Palm in Mineral and Shallow Peat Soils

“…However, the results from this study support the idea that AMF improves the growth performance of sago palms. Indeed, growth-improvement of date palm and oil palm by AMF were reported [18,19] and salt and drought tolerance in date palm were confirmed [46,47]. To ensure the relationships between sago palm and AMF, inoculating tests of AMF and the correlation analysis of plant growth performance and AMF community structure in the field is needed in the future.…”

“…Recent studies have revealed that the inoculation with AMF improves the growth of the Arecaceae family [18,19]. In the case of the sago palm, Chan et al, (2002) [20] detected AMF belonging to Glomales of the Zygomycetes in tropical peat soil.…”

Integrated management for major date palm pests in Iraq

“…At present, the use of pesticides is not economically and environmentally commendable because of the low efficiency of most pesticides in use (Al-Jboory et al, 1999Al-Samarraie et al, 1988;Ba-Angood, 1978;Ba-Angood et al, 2009;Ali et al, 2010). Less toxic materials which are called environmentally friendly pesticides are considered as safe alternative for controlling date palm pests (Al-Karaki, 2013;Ali and Mohammad, 2014;Al-Khawaja, 1999;Hama et al, 2002;Hama and Abdul-Razzak, 2006;Dhoubi et al, 2007;Al-Bahely, 2004;Mohammad et al, 2011Mohammad et al, , 2013Mohammad et al, , 2014Sayed et al, 2001;Lysandrou et al, 2010;Gerling et al, 2006). Other means such as light traps were used as monitoring and control tools against date palm pests especially borers (Khalaf et al, 2010).The best solution lies in the development and implementation of an integrated management program that addresses the entire range of date palm pests.…”