Mycorrhizal Applications

Mycorrhizal Applications was founded twenty-five years ago, however, the mycorrhizal fungi that comprise our MycoApply® mycorrhizal inoculant products have a partnership with plants that dates back more than 450 million years. It was the partnership with mycorrhizal fungi that facilitated plants’ colonization of dry land from their origins in the seas, and to this day, 95% of terrestrial plants rely on this symbiotic relationship to thrive.

These days, most professional growers have researched or studied mycorrhizae in one context or another and know that mycorrhizal fungi are beneficial soil organisms that have a symbiotic relationship with plant roots. However, although these beneficial soil organisms have been a bit of a buzzword in the horticulture world over the past few years, mycorrhizae are not a new technology, rather, they are long-time trusted plant partners. And MycoApply® is the long-time trusted mycorrhizal brand, helping growers utilize this technology since 1995.

How it Works: The benefits of mycorrhizae can be explained quite simply: “The better the roots, the better the plant.” Mycorrhizal fungi live in symbiosis with plants, directly providing the root system with what the plant needs (water and nutrients), while the plant provides what the mycorrhizal fungi need (excess sugars from photosynthesis). The plants establish this relationship with mycorrhizae when a growing plant’s roots come into contact with a mycorrhizal propagule (the “seed” of the fungi). Once the symbiotic relationship is established, mycorrhizae expand beyond the root mass by sending out ultra-fine mycelium filaments (hyphae) into the soil which act as a living extension of the plant’s roots, and increase the efficiency and effectiveness of nutrient and water utilization by the plant.

How Nurseries Can Benefit: Approximately 95% of all plants on earth are mycorrhizal, and rely on this symbiosis to thrive. Plants and mycorrhizae have developed this mutually beneficial relationship over the past 450+ millions years as a mechanism for increased survival. If you go out into nature on a hike in any undisturbed area like a forest or a meadow, the plants all around you are relying on this symbiotic relationship to survive in the absence of inputs. However, in horticulture, the mycorrhizal propagules that kick off this relationship are generally absent from soil or artificial growing media, and must be introduced through inoculation. Mycorrhizal Applications’ MycoApply® mycorrhizal inoculant products can be easily added to a professional grower’s production protocol by several means: horticulture injection systems, soil/media incorporation, drench, or plug/liner/bare root dip, or by any means a grower can position the inoculum in direct contact with growing or emerging roots.

Why MycoApply^®? As the leader in the field of commercial mycorrhizal inoculant products, the team at Mycorrhizal Applications has decades of experience helping professional growers adopt this crucial biological technology. Growers can work with Mycorrhizal Applications to determine the best blend of mycorrhizal species to utilize for the particular crops that they grow, discuss which inoculation methods to consider, and plan for the ideal timing in the production process for inoculation in order to ensure the lowest cost and maximum return on investment.

MycoApply^® is available through many nursery supply distributors in the U.S. and Canada. For more information, go to mycorrhizae.com, email inquiries@mycorrhizae.com, or contact the Mycorrhizal Applications team at (866) 476-7800.