Prospects of mycorrhisation of Hevea brasiliensis cultivation in С^ote d'Ivoir on the basis of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi

Rubber cultivation is of great economic importance in Côte d'Ivoire. Since 1997, the country has been the number one rubber producer in Africa and, since 2018, the sixth in the world. It produced 664,695 tonnes of natural rubber in 2019. It ranks fourth among export crops after cocoa, coffee and cotton and generates an annual revenue of 203 billion CFA francs. Increasingly large areas are required to grow hevea in Côte d'Ivoire. Rubber plantations have grown from 116,000 ha in 2002 to more than 318,000 ha in 2014 and 534,000 ha in 2018. The increase in arable land area is accompanied by massive use of chemical inputs (fertilisers, pesticides and herbicides) to improve soil fertility and thus increase production. However, these cultivation practices can have harmful effects on the environment and jeopardise sustainable rubber cultivation in Côte d'Ivoire. Cultivation is therefore limited by a number of factors, including soil and climatic hazards, disease, physical degradation and reduced soil fertility. Alternative solutions to sustainably improve Hevea production may involve utilising the beneficial effects of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF). These soil fungi form symbiotic associations with the roots of most terrestrial plants, forming mixed organs called mycorrhizae. The article provides a review of foreign literature sources on biological features and behaviour of endogenous AMF with the aim of further implementation of mycorrhization technology in agrarian production.