What plants use mycorrhizal fungi?
• Some plants are so dependent on mycorrhizae they may struggle to • survive without it. A few extremely dependent ones are avocados, • bananas, all types of citrus, and grapes. Other types may not be quite as dependent, but will still benefit greatly from having the right mycorrhizae on their roots. Examples are asparagus, artichokes, melons, tomatoes, peppers, and squash (note the common element of thick fleshy roots with few feeder roots on all of these). The beet and cabbage families plus a few others apparently do not rely on mycorrhizae. Can you see mycorrhizal fungi? Not without a microscope, and even then you need to know what to look for. You can, however, easily see their effects. Last season, I planted potatoes in a new bed with heavy clay soil, dusting the seed pieces with mycorrhizal inoculant. When I went to “rob” some new potatoes, I was surprised to find that I could easily dig them out with my bare hands. The soil around each plant was moist and granular in texture, li
