Data from: Plant geographic origin and phylogeny as potential drivers of community structure in root-inhabiting fungi

1. Root-inhabiting fungal communities, including mutualists and
antagonists, influence host plant performance, and can potentially shape
plant community composition. However, there is uncertainty about how
root-inhabiting fungal communities are structured, and if fungal community
characteristics are significant predictors of host plant abundance. 2. In
this study, we first assessed how root-inhabiting fungal communities were
structured in relation to the phylogeny and geographic origins (native vs
exotic) of their host plants in an old-field community. In addition, we
took into consideration the spatial arrangements (i.e. physical locations)
of the individual host plants. We then tested if the relative abundances
of pathogenic and beneficial arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi could
predict host plant abundances. 3. We found that host plant phylogeny was
an important factor in structuring the whole fungal community,
irrespective of host plant origin. Furthermore, the spatial arrangements
of individual host plants were a strong predictor of AM fungal community
structure. Host plant phylogeny and spatial arrangements appeared to
similarly affect the structure of pathogenic fungal communities. No
distinct differences were observed between native and exotic plant species
in fungal community characteristics. The relative abundances of AM and
pathogenic fungi were not significant predictors for observed abundances
of their host plants. 4. Synthesis. Host plant phylogeny and spatial
arrangements can structure naturally occurring root-inhabiting fungal
communities. The absence of distinct differences in fungal community
composition, including pathogens, in exotic and native plants suggests
long residence times and the consequent naturalization of exotic species
in the region, allowing for the establishment of similar plant-microbial
interactions between native and exotic species.