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UdeC Research Reveals Encouraging Results on the Relationship Between Araucaria araucana and Fungi in Post-Fire Soils

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The Fondecyt Project 11220305, titled “Tripartite interaction between arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, endophytic fungi and Araucaria araucana plants: effect on plant performance and its establishment capacity in soils affected by recent forest fires,” led by Dr. Daniel Chávez Matamala, a Doctor in Biological Sciences and faculty member of the Department of Plant Science and Technology at the University of Concepción, Los Ángeles Campus, has yielded interesting results regarding the reforestation of this species in soils affected by wildfires.

From a broader perspective, the preliminary conclusions from the first-year trials, which involved initial nursery-level evaluations, demonstrated significant effects of both arbuscular and endophytic fungi on enhancing the growth of Araucaria araucana, allowing for better development at the nursery stage.

The faculty member from the Los Ángeles Campus of the University of Concepción stated, “Plants inoculated with these fungi, compared to the control plants also planted in these sites, responded more favorably, showing higher nutritional content, greater root development, and increased height compared to the control plants.” He added that these provisional results highlight the importance of the biological component associated with the root system when establishing plants in such soil conditions.

Physiological Parameters

Dr. Chávez also emphasized the relevance of physiological parameters, which were also improved in plants inoculated with these fungal consortia, unlike plants that thrive in nurseries without considering their associated microorganisms.

“In both highly affected and unaffected soils, inoculated plants respond better, making this a variable to consider for reforestation programs, especially with this emblematic species for the country, where this biological component associated with these plants must be taken into account,” he explained.

This entire effort led to an undergraduate thesis, which revealed some significant differences. Finally, these inoculated plants were transplanted and established directly in the China Muerta National Reserve, where the results demonstrated the plants' response when grown in fire-damaged soils.

The researcher clarified that the work was conducted only in the Andes Mountain region, where the China Muerta National Reserve is located. On this point, the professor concluded, “It is always important to work with biological material from the areas where these plants will be introduced, as well as the microorganisms, to scale up and reinoculate the plants before field transplantation.”

On another note, Dr. Chávez acknowledged that while he is aware of the typical timelines for project development, his research subject always requires more time, as Araucaria araucana is a slow-growing species. “We are talking about a millennial species that takes 40 to 60 years to produce seeds. It requires a considerable evaluation period...”

The researcher hopes to continue studying everything related to endophytic fungi associated with Araucaria araucana. During the project’s development, they hosted a visit from Dr. Rafael Vilela of the Center for Strategic Technologies of the Northeast (Cetene), Recife, Brazil (a specialist in endophytic fungi).

“We successfully isolated several endophytes and now aim to study their molecular identification to understand their diversity and continue developing these consortia. This will help determine which species are present in Araucaria araucana, allowing future research into the biotechnological potential behind these fungi,” concluded Dr. Chávez.