Occurrence, Distribution, Isolation and Identification of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi in The Rhizosphere Soils of Castor [Ricinus Cummunis (L.) From Mahabubnagar District of Telangana State, India

Present investigation was conducted to study association of AM fungi with Castor (Ricinus cummunis Linn) and their relation to soil physico-chemical characters. Twelve AM fungal species belonging to 2 genera Acaulospora and Glomus were observed. Among them the genus Acaulospora was represented by nine species (A. bireticulata, A. dilacata, A. koske, A. lacunosa, A. laevis, A. mellea, A. myriocarpa A. reticulatumand A. spinosa.) The genus Glomus was represented by three species namely G. aggregatum G. fasciculatum, and G. tortuosum. Among the eleven localities studied, highest spore count was noticed from Makthal. Bijinapally had greater number of AM fungi. Lowest spores were recorded from the soil samples of Chinnadarpally and Bandamidipally. Percent root colonization in castor ranged from 62 to 95%. The study revealed that soil moisture, pH, EC, Phosphorus and Carbon were negatively correlated, while Nitrogen and Potassium were positively correlated with the distribution of AM fungi.