Electron Microscopical Studies of the Microflora of Roots of Sand Dune Grasses

Summary Scanning and transmission electron microscopy were used to study microflora of roots of three species of sand dune grasses. Observations were made on the mucigel on intact epidermal cells and the colonization of sloughing superficial root cells by bacteria and actinomycetes. Thin sections of the same root samples showed that bacteria penetrated epidermal cells either by perforating the cell wall or by exploiting the middle lamella between adjacent cells as an avenue of entry. Cortical cells of all three species contained vesicular‐arbuscular endophytes. Several phases of the mycorrhizal association could be identified.