Editing Ericaceae (section)

=== Mycorrhizal relationships ===
{{Main|Ericoid mycorrhiza}}

Like other stress-tolerant plants, many Ericaceae have [[mycorrhiza]]l fungi to assist with extracting nutrients from infertile [[soil]]s, as well as evergreen foliage to conserve absorbed nutrients.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Department od Mycorrhizal Symbioses |url=https://www.ibot.cas.cz/mykosym/en_eric.html |access-date=2023-12-04 |website=ibot.cas.cz}}</ref> This trait is not found in the [[Clethraceae]] and [[Cyrillaceae]], the two families most closely related to the Ericaceae. Most Ericaceae (excluding the Monotropoideae, and some Epacridoideae) form a distinctive accumulation of [[Ericoid mycorrhiza|mycorrhizae]], in which fungi grow in and around the roots and provide the plant with nutrients. The [[Pyroloideae]] are [[mixotrophic]] and gain sugars from the mycorrhizae, as well as nutrients.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Lallemand |first1=Félix |last2=Puttsepp |first2=Ülle |last3=Lang |first3=Mait |last4=Luud |first4=Aarne |last5=Courty |first5=Pierre-Emmanuel |last6=Palancade |first6=Cécile |last7=Selosse |first7=Marc-André |date=September 2017 |title=Mixotrophy in Pyroleae (Ericaceae) from Estonian boreal forests does not vary with light or tissue age |journal=Annals of Botany |volume=120 |issue=3 |pages=361–371 |doi=10.1093/aob/mcx054 |issn=0305-7364 |pmc=5591414 |pmid=28575199}}</ref>

The cultivation of blueberries, cranberries, and [[Gaultheria procumbens|wintergreen]] for their fruit and oils relies especially on these unique relationships with fungi, as a healthy mycorrhizal network in the soil helps the plants to resist environmental stresses that might otherwise damage crop yield.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ericoid Mycorrhizal Fungi & Cranberry: Mutualisms with Potential – Wisconsin Fruit |url=https://fruit.wisc.edu/2021/06/29/ericoid-mycorrhizal-fungi-cranberry-mutualisms-with-potential/ |access-date=2023-12-04 |website=fruit.wisc.edu}}</ref> Ericoid mycorrhizae are responsible for a high rate of uptake of nitrogen, which causes naturally low levels of free nitrogen in ericoid soils.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last=Fagúndez |first=Jaime |date=February 2013 |title=Heathlands confronting global change: drivers of biodiversity loss from past to future scenarios |journal=Annals of Botany |volume=111 |issue=2 |pages=151–172 |doi=10.1093/aob/mcs257 |issn=0305-7364 |pmc=3555525 |pmid=23223202}}</ref> These mycorrhizal fungi may also increase the tolerance of Ericaceae to [[heavy metals]] in soil, and may cause plants to grow faster by producing [[phytohormone]]s.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Wei |first1=Xiangying |last2=Zhang |first2=Wenbing |last3=Zulfiqar |first3=Faisal |last4=Zhang |first4=Chunying |last5=Chen |first5=Jianjun |date=2022 |title=Ericoid mycorrhizal fungi as biostimulants for improving propagation and production of ericaceous plants |journal=Frontiers in Plant Science |volume=13 |doi=10.3389/fpls.2022.1027390 |issn=1664-462X |doi-access=free |pmid=36466284 |pmc=9709444 }}</ref>