Micro fungi in Swedish coniferous forest soils

Abstract:
Microfungi represent an important part of the fungal flora in coniferous forest soils and they play a significant role in the decomposition processes. Common genera and species isolated at 3 sites in Sweden, 2 of which have well developed Fe podzol soil profiles are presented. Fungal isolations were made with a soil-washing technique from 5 soil horizons. Aureobasidium and Cladosporium were only isolated in the uppermost layers, Penicillium was most common in the organic layers, while Oidiodendron and Tolypocladium were most frequent in the mineral horizons. The most common genus, Mortierella, was evenly distributed between the horizons, but many of the species within the genus showed preferences for specific soil layers. Some factors which may influence the vertical distribution of the fungi are suggested: composition and concentration of the substrate, pH, temperature, moisture content and biological interactions.