Ectomycorrhizal Inoculation Enhances the Salt Tolerance of Quercus mongolica Seedlings

Salt stress harms the growth and development of plants, and the degree of soil salinization in North China is becoming increasingly severe. Ectomycorrhiza (ECM) is a symbiotic system formed by fungi and plants that can improve the growth and salt tolerance of plants. No studies to date have examined the salt tolerance of Quercus mongolica, a typical ectomycorrhizal tree species of temperate forests in the northern hemisphere. Here, we inoculated Q. mongolica with two ectomycorrhizal fungi (Gomphidius viscidus; Suillus luteus) under NaCl stress to characterize the effects of ECM. The results showed that the symbiotic relationship of Q. mongolica with G. viscidus was more stable than that with S. luteus. The cross-sectional area of roots increased after inoculation with the two types of ectomycorrhizal fungi. Compared with the control group, plant height, soluble sugar content, and soluble protein content of leaves were 1.62, 2.41, and 2.04 times higher in the G. viscidus group, respectively. Chlorophyll (Chl) content, stomatal conductance (Gs), and intracellular CO₂ concentration (Ci) were significantly higher in Q. mongolica inoculated with ectomycorrhizal fungi than in the control, but differences in the net photosynthetic rate (Pn), transpiration rate (Tr), and photosystem II maximum photochemical efficiency (Fv/Fm) were lower. The relative conductivity of Q. mongolica inoculated with the two ectomycorrhizal fungi was consistently lower than that of non-mycorrhizal seedlings, with the effect of G. viscidus more pronounced than that of S. luteus. The malondialdehyde (MDA) content showed a similar pattern. Peroxidase (POD) and catylase (CAT) levels in mycorrhizal seedlings were generally higher than those of non-mycorrhizal seedlings under normal conditions, and were significantly higher than those of non-mycorrhizal seedlings on the 36th and 48th day after salt treatment, respectively. Overall, the results indicated that the salt tolerance of Q. mongolica seedlings was improved by ectomycorrhizal inoculation.