The present study was conducted to study the effect of indigenous Glomus fasciculatum as bio-inoculant in three different cultivars viz., Jyothi, Ankur and Manjirigutta of brinjal to evaluate the potential effect of AM fungi on the extent of root colonization, plant growth parameters such as shoot and root lengths, their fresh and dry weights, biomass and dry matter production and N, P, K status in pot experimental conditions. The three selected cultivars of brinjal showed positive response to AM fungal inoculation. The per cent AM fungal root colonization was maximum (48.6%) in Ankur variety. While, Jyothi and Manjirigutta showed 40.15 and 40.0% respectively. Plants inoculated with G. fasciculatum resulted in significant increase in plant height, shoot and root fresh and dry weights over nonmycorrhizal control plants. The cultivar Manjirigutta showed greater response to G. fasciculatum by recording maximum shoot fresh (63.7gm/plant) and dry weights (5.43gm/plant) followed by Jyothi and Ankur (61.83 and 56.30 gm/plant respectively) and (7.33, 7.03gm/plant respectively). Similar trend was observed with regard to root fresh and dry weight (8.88 and 1.87gm/plant) followed by Jyothi and Ankur (8.83, 0.75 and 8.38, 0.88gm/plant respectively). The analysis of variance for biomass and dry matter production in three selected cultivars showed statistically significant differences between groups, and between time intervals. Shoots and roots of AM inoculated plants recorded significantly (p < 0.000) higher N, P, K levels than control plants indicating that these three elements were efficiently transported in mycorrhizal inoculated plants. Phosphorus content increased more than two folds in mycorrhizal plants over non-mycorrhizal plants. The results of our experiment therefore proved that Glomus fasciculatum acted as a biofertilizer in three cultivars of brinjal in increasing the shoot and root biomass, dry matter production and nutrient uptake.
