Document Type : Agricultural Entomology
Authors
1 Department of Biodiversity, Institute of Science and High Technology and Environmental Sciences, Graduate University of Advanced Technology, Kerman, Iran
2 Graduate University of Advanced Technology
3 Department of Biodiversity, Institute of Science and High Technology and Environmental Sciences, Graduate University of Advanced Technology, Kerman, Iran.
Abstract
Drought stress is a pivotal abiotic stressor and a key environmental factor constraining plant growth and crop yield. Utilizing beneficial symbionts like mycorrhizal fungi can ameliorate plant resilience under drought conditions. The bean plant holds substantial agricultural importance, which has faced significant threat from the pea aphid, Acyrthosiphon pisum. This study investigates the interactions between drought stress and mycorrhizal fungi and their effects on bean plant and the pea aphid. We investigated the growth parameters of bean plants, along with the population growth and biological traits of the pea aphid, under the combined effects of drought stress and Mycorrhizal fungi symbiosis. In the first-year experiment, results showed an interactive effect of drought stress with mycorrhizal fungi on leaf area and plant weight indices. In addition, there was a three-way interaction among plant variety, drought stress, and mycorrhizal fungi on plant leaf area index. In the second year, drought stress led to a decrease in plant growth indices such as plant height and number of leaves. Additionally, drought stress negatively impacted the biological parameters of the pea aphid, survival rate, lifespan, and mortality. Also there was a two-way interaction of drought stress and mycorrhizal fungi on the aphid survival rate. These findings suggest that severe drought stress significantly affects both plants and aphids, potentially influencing the performance of the bean plant and the population growth of the pea aphid. The effect of interaction between drought stress and mycorrhizal fungi on plant growth and aphid survival was significant.
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