The olive tree is a temperate climate plant, whose fructification requires low temperatures before flowering. The production of good quality seedling material is essential for establishing an orchard, and association with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) can be very important in this respect. In Brazil, there are no studies related to the use of AMF in olive seedling production. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of the use of different AMF species on the development of seedlings of olive cultivars that may be grown in the region of southern of Minas Gerais. A greenhouse experiment was carried out evaluating three olive cultivars (Arbequina, Grappolo 541 - MGS GRAP541 and Maria da Fé - GS MARIENSE) and four treatments of inoculation with AMF (without inoculum and with inoculum of FMAs species Glomus clarum, Gigaspora rosea, or Scutelospora scrobiculata), according to a factorial combination 4 × 3. The experiment was conducted in a completely randomized design with three replications. The AMF studied led to a greater shoot and root dry matter weight when compared to treatments without fungi, especially in the olive seedling cultivars Arbequina and Grappolo (MGS GRAP 541). The cultivar Maria da Fé (MSG MARIENSE) had low mycorrhizal dependency and lower production of shoot dry matter weight compared to the other cultivars.
mycorrhiza; inoculation; mycorrhizal dependency