Mycorrhizal fungi use in propagation

The advantages of using mycorrhizal fungi in propagation include producing more stress resilient plants with higher transplanting success and faster establishment whilst reducing the need for pesticide application during production. Such plants will have increased drought and nutrient tolerance when planted in landscape and subsequently achieve a higher marketing value.

RGPRO HORTI 2 Propagation mix has been specifically formulated and tested by PlantWorks, the UK’s only producer of mycorrhizal fungi at its facilities at the Kent Science Park. The granular product is designed to be used in different propagation stages of nursery plants by mixing it evenly with the potting media before planting In its latest briefing note to growers, PlantWorks extends its list of tested substrates by publishing results for tests using the TREF propagation substrate with its new joint mycorrhizal fungi and biostimulant RGPRO HORTI 2 blend.

Klara Hajdu, Technical lead in horticulture at PlantWorks explains, ‘Our recent test using TREF, leads from trials at Brockhill Nursery on its range of woody ornamental plants where significant mortality reduction was achieved when using our mycorrhizal fungi range. In a quest to improve the usability of these products we sought to confirm, under scientific conditions, that mycorrhizal fungi can be added into potting blends at relatively low rates, circa 1% and can both survive and successfully inoculate subsequently planted seeds and seedlings.

In this experiment we were looking at different mixing ratios of granular arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal product RGPRO HORTI2 and Jiffy’s Tref professional potting media. Tref is a range of peat, coir and perlite based substrates, with added NPK, which are widely used in nurseries for liner and young plant production. RGPRO HORTI 2 is a biological media amendment which consists of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and amino acid derived bio stimulants. Our work with TREF confirms this substrate is an excellent media for mycorrhizal fungi in commercial growing systems.’

For more information:
PlantWorks
T:+44(0)1795 411527
F:+44(0)1795 411529
info@rootgrow.co.uk
www.plantworksuk.co.uk