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80 <br />70 <br />`0 60 <br />m 50 <br />N <br />0 40 <br />U 30 <br />20 <br />10 <br />Figure C-2. Colonization rates by treatment. <br />^ Control <br />Field Inoculated <br />Nursery Inoculated <br /> <br />1 <br />Other Factors The seed source of plant material varied between treatments. Plants in the <br />nursery inoculated treatment were grown from seed collected at Seneca Mine. Plants in the <br />control and field inoculation treatments were grown from a Utah seed source. Use of different <br />seed sources was necessary since non-inoculated plants from a Colorado seed source were not <br />available. The implication of this factor is that seed source could effect both the survival and <br />vigor of plants. Although we cannot assess the impact of seed source on mortality, it is assumed <br />to be minimal. Factors which would be expected to influence survival among ecotypes, such as <br />short-term or long-term extreme climatic conditions, were not experienced during the study. In <br />addition, height and vigor were not significantly different between seedlings at the end of the <br />study. Thus, the impact of genetics is assumed to be insignificant. <br />' Conclusion <br />Shrub survival is strongly affected by mycorrhizal fungi. Nursery inoculation proved superior to <br />field inoculation. It appears that colonization of plants by mycorrhizae prior to outplanting is <br />necessary to improve first yeaz survival. A majority of plants, however, become colonized <br />following one growing season due to the influx of spores onto the site. Although seed source <br />potentially confounds the results of this study, the normality of weather and lack of differences in <br />vigor rating indicate that this probably played only a small role in first year survival. <br />1 <br />21 <br />-------- <br />Overall Chokecherry <br />