Sustainable Coffee Seedling Production through Rhizophagus intraradices Inoculation and Organic Substrate Management in Motozintla, Chiapas
E Pérez-Mejía Victor
Autonomous University of Chiapas, Campus IV, Huehuetán, Chiapas, 30660, Mexico.
F Aguirre-Cadena Juan *
Autonomous University of Chiapas, Campus IV, Huehuetán, Chiapas, 30660, Mexico.
G Salgado-Mora Marisela
Autonomous University of Chiapas, Campus IV, Huehuetán, Chiapas, 30660, Mexico.
Y Trigueros-Vázquez Imna
Autonomous University of Chiapas, Campus IV, Huehuetán, Chiapas, 30660, Mexico.
G Cerda-Ocaranza Mauricio
Autonomous University of Chiapas, Campus IV, Huehuetán, Chiapas, 30660, Mexico.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Aims: This study evaluated the morphological and physiological growth of coffee (Coffea arabica) seedlings cultivated with Rhizophagus intraradices and different organic amendments under outdoor nursery conditions in Motozintla, Chiapas, Mexico.
Study Design: The experiment followed a completely randomised design with five treatments and ten replicates.
Place and Duration of Study: The study was conducted outdoors in Motozintla, Chiapas, Mexico, between July and October 2025.
Methodology: Five substrate combinations were compared: soil + mycorrhiza + vermicompost (T1), soil + mycorrhiza + poultry manure (T2), soil + mycorrhiza + mango sawdust (T3), soil + mycorrhiza + fermented coffee pulp (T4), and soil + mycorrhiza as a control (T5). Leaf length, leaf diameter, stem diameter, leaf area, fresh weight, dry weight, and root length were evaluated between 21 and 210 days after sowing.
Results: For most variables measured, treatments that included an organic substrate showed better responses than the control. T4 had the greatest leaf length, leaf area (>330 cm²), and biomass accumulation (12 g fresh weight and 4.0 g dry weight). In contrast, T1 recorded the highest leaf diameter, stem diameter, and root length (>21 cm). Leaf area and biomass in T2 and T3 remained below the values observed in the control.
Conclusion: The response to R. intraradices varied with the quality of the organic matter added to the substrate. Among the materials tested, fermented coffee pulp and vermicompost provided the most favourable conditions for coffee seedling production.
Keywords: Coffee seedlings, organic substrates, arbuscular mycorrhiza, Rhizophagus intraradices, vermicompost, organic substrates, nursery