Implications of Past, Current, and Future Agricultural Practices for Mycorrhiza-Mediated Nutrient Flux

Arbuscular mycorrhizas have made major and consistent contributions to crop production for a long time in the history of humanity. The evolution of tillage equipment negatively impacted mycorrhizas, and in recent times, the Green Revolution brought about by the fertilizer industry reduced the relevance of mycorrhizas in countries with intensive crop production. As the contribution of the arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) symbiosis to nutrient flux in agricultural soils declined, negative impacts of agriculture on the environment increased. However, science and technology have begun to elevate mycorrhizas from irrelevance to an important role in precision agriculture through active management of the symbiosis. It is likely that if it is to be sustainable, agriculture will depend on increased nutrient flux through AM networks as the global population heads toward 9 billion in coming years.