Role of mycorrhizae in milkweeds: Implications for monarch conservation

Abstract

As little as 1% of the original expanse of North America's tallgrass prairie remains, and the survival of almost all grassland plants depends on the symbiotic partnership with arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi. These beneficial soil fungi associate with roots of the host plant and increase uptake of essential nutrients and water, thereby increasing growth, survival, and drought stress. A number of milkweed species, such as common milkweed, butterfly milkweed, and prairie milkweed, are common in the remaining portions of Great Plains grasslands, and are essential to monarch butterfly migration. We know that some milkweed species are highly dependent on arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi for survival. However, level of dependence on this symbiosis is not known for most milkweed species.