MORPHOLOGICAL RESPONSE OF FORAGE CHICORY FINE ROOTS TO MANIPULATED SOIL PHOSPHORUS LEVELS

In Appalachian pastures, chicory (Cichorium intybus L.) offers the potential for increased phosphorus (P) uptake. To determine if hydroponically grown chicory root response patterns also occur with soil grown plants, an experiment with three cultivars and four soil P levels was conducted. Roots were washed free of soil and then measured, then plant tissues were analyzed for P content. With decreasing soil P concentrations, “Grasslands Puna” decreased the diameter and increased the length of the thinnest roots. The cultivar “Forage Feast” responded to low P with the opposite pattern. Two populations of root diameter classes (meso-diameter classes - mDC) are shown to be involved in these responses. With Grasslands Puna, the larger diameter mDC is apparently suppressed at low P levels in favor of the smaller diameter mDC. The reverse is true with Forage Feast. Thus, chicory cultivars have differential fine root responses to soil P levels.