Techniques for Studying the Infection of Plants by Vesicular‐arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi Under Axenic Conditions

SUMMARY Methods of growing axenic seedlings infected by vesicular arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi are described, using agar, paper or glass as a support. Two of the techniques are particularly suitable for studying the interaction between the fungus and the host plant, for example the germination of the spore inoculum, hyphal growth around the roots before the symbiosis has been initiated and the early stages of root penetration.