Tag: soil ecology

Behind the paper

Hana Skálová: Cations make a difference: Soil nutrient patches and fine-scale root abundance of individual species in a mountain grassland

Alt: Stable nutrient patches in the field seem attractive for plant roots In this new post Hana Skálová, from the Institute of Botany in Průhonice (Czech Republic), presents her recently published article “Cations make a difference: Soil nutrient patches and fine-scale root abundance of individual species in a mountain grassland.” She discusses the importance of overlooked nutrients on plant roots, highlights how new technology enables … Continue reading Hana Skálová: Cations make a difference: Soil nutrient patches and fine-scale root abundance of individual species in a mountain grassland

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Behind the Special Feature

Pablo García-Palacios & Ji Chen: Emerging relationships among soil microbes, carbon dynamics and climate change

In this new post, Pablo García-Palacios, from the Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Spain, and Ji Chen from Aarhus University, Denmark, who both serve as Associate Editors for Functional Ecology, present the Special Feature ‘Emerging relationships among soil microbes, carbon dynamics and climate change’. They talk about how they conceived the Special Feature, how they selected authors and topics, and how they coordinated with the contributing … Continue reading Pablo García-Palacios & Ji Chen: Emerging relationships among soil microbes, carbon dynamics and climate change

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Behind the paper, Haldane Prize Winner

Haldane 2021 Winner Max Mallen-Cooper: Tiny plants with big nutrient dreams

We are delighted to announce that the winner of the Haldane Prize 2021 for early career researchers has been awarded to Max Mallen-Cooper. Check out their story behind the award winning paper below and read all the shortlisted papers here. Winner of the Haldane Prize 2021, Max Mallen-Cooper from the University of New South Wales discusses their latest research: Tissue chemistry of biocrust species along … Continue reading Haldane 2021 Winner Max Mallen-Cooper: Tiny plants with big nutrient dreams

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Behind the paper

Laura Castaneda-Gomez: Roots may not be key drivers of soil responses to elevated CO2 in a phosphorus-limited forest

In this new post, Laura Castañeda-Gómez, a new ecological researcher working at The University of Toronto, Canada, shares their paper: The influence of roots on mycorrhizal fungi, saprotrophic microbes and carbon dynamics in a low‐phosphorus Eucalyptus forest under elevated CO2—recently shortlisted for the Haldane Prize for Early Career Researchers. Last February, the Earth’s atmosphere reached a new record high CO2 concentration of almost 422 ppm. … Continue reading Laura Castaneda-Gomez: Roots may not be key drivers of soil responses to elevated CO2 in a phosphorus-limited forest

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Curtis Lubbe
Behind the paper

Curtis Lubbe: Right place, wrong time? Hide in the soil – avoidant strategies in plants

In this new post, Curtis Lubbe from the Institute of Botany (Czech Academy of Sciences) presents his latest work ‘Winter belowground: changing winters and the perennating organs of herbaceous plants’, discuss the importance of plant storage organs in perennial plants and surprise us with his drawing talent. About the paper This paper is a review of our current understanding of how the belowground storage organs … Continue reading Curtis Lubbe: Right place, wrong time? Hide in the soil – avoidant strategies in plants

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Sarah Konaré at the Lamto savanna. Photo: T. Srikanthasamy
Behind the paper

Sarah Konare: soil exploration by trees in humid savannas

In this new post, Sarah Konaré, a junior scientist at the University of Korhogo, presents her latest work ‘Spatial heterogeneity in nitrification and soil exploration by trees favour source-sink dynamics in a humid savanna: a modeling approach’, discusses the importance of N cycle on savannas and talks about her future steps in ecology. 1) About the paper Our paper highlights the importance of the soil … Continue reading Sarah Konare: soil exploration by trees in humid savannas

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Jessica Moore is a microbial and ecosystem ecologist currently working in the Biosciences Division at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
Behind the paper

Jessica Moore: Root-microbe-ecologist Interactions

Jessica Moore’s research “Plant roots stimulate the decomposition of complex, but not simple, soil carbon” is shortlisted for the 2020 Haldane Prize prize for early career researchers. Here, she talks about her inspiration for the project as well as her experience as a first-generation college student and the importance of a support network. Recently, there has been a lot of discussion around how roots and … Continue reading Jessica Moore: Root-microbe-ecologist Interactions

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