Mycorrhizal and non-mycorrhizal dicotyledonous herbaceous plants differ in root anatomy: evidence from the Middle Urals, Russia

Root structure syndromes of four families of monocots in the Middle Urals

“…Integral indicators have been used to isolate these syndromes: SRL, RTD, root diameter, cortical fraction ( Bergmann et al., 2020 ). Apparently, syndromes are more difficult to identify when it comes to the analysis of anatomical features, where the roots of plants belonging to the same group (AM) may have diverse morphotypes that cannot be attributed to one group ( Betekhtina and Veselkin, 2019 ).…”

“…In monocots, compared to dicots ( Betekhtina and Veselkin, 2019 ), the overall variability of some root characteristics is high. For example, in herbaceous dicots, root system branching varies from 3 to 5 orders ( Betekhtina and Veselkin, 2019 ), whereas in monocots within the present study – from 1 to 4 orders. In dicots, the thickness of first-order roots varied between families by no more than two times, and in monocots, up to 15–20 times.…”

“…Arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM), ectomycorrhizae and other fungi colonize parenchyma of root cortex of plants. High AM colonization rates generally accompany large root diameter ( Veselkin and Betekhtina, 2013 ; Betekhtina and Veselkin, 2019 ), a small specific root length (SRL) ( Kong et al., 2019 ) and root surface area relative to volume. Mycorrhizal plants have fewer root branching orders, but cortex is longer compared to non-mycorrhizal plants ( Betekhtina and Veselkin, 2019 ).…”

“…High AM colonization rates generally accompany large root diameter ( Veselkin and Betekhtina, 2013 ; Betekhtina and Veselkin, 2019 ), a small specific root length (SRL) ( Kong et al., 2019 ) and root surface area relative to volume. Mycorrhizal plants have fewer root branching orders, but cortex is longer compared to non-mycorrhizal plants ( Betekhtina and Veselkin, 2019 ). In non-mycorrhizal and facultatively mycorrhizal plants, roots are usually not only strongly branched, but often have a short or rapidly reducing cortex, which is accompanied by a small root diameter ( Betekhtina and Veselkin, 2019 ) and a higher SRL ( Ryser, 2006 ).…”

“…Mycorrhizal plants have fewer root branching orders, but cortex is longer compared to non-mycorrhizal plants ( Betekhtina and Veselkin, 2019 ). In non-mycorrhizal and facultatively mycorrhizal plants, roots are usually not only strongly branched, but often have a short or rapidly reducing cortex, which is accompanied by a small root diameter ( Betekhtina and Veselkin, 2019 ) and a higher SRL ( Ryser, 2006 ). In non-mycorrhizal plants, as a rule, root hairs are well developed and roots are adapted to direct absorption of substances from soil, since they have a large surface area in relation to their volume ( Eissenstat et al., 2000 ).…”