Soil contamination by crude oil: impact on the mycorrhizosphere and on the revegetation potential of forest trees.

In vitro and greenhouse biotests were carried out to study the effects of various concentrations of crude oil on the mycorrhizosphere and the ability of ectomycorrhizal fungi to colonise Norway spruce and poplar seedlings grown on contaminated soil. Ectomycorrhizal fungi grown in pure cultures showed a variety of reactions to crude oil, ranging from growth stimulation to total inhibition of growth, depending on the species of fungi. Germination of poplar and spruce seeds was not significantly affected. The growth of spruce seedlings was not affected by crude oil, whereas that of poplar seedlings was significantly reduced at high concentrations. None of the concentrations had any effect on the degree of ectomycorrhizal and endomycorrhizal colonisation of poplar. With spruce, however, the ectomycorrhizal fungi showed species-specific reactions to increasing concentrations, in accordance with the results of the pure culture test. The length of time between soil contamination and seeding affects both seedling growth and the mycorrhizal infection potential of the soil. The results confirm the importance of mycorrhizal fungi in the bioremediation of soils contaminated by crude oil.