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We aim to answer the following set of scientific questions:

  • To what extend do soil organisms control processes in the aboveground communities of plants and animals?
  •  What is the impact of soil biota on the ecosystem processes vs the impact of soil chemistry and structure?
  •  What is the role of soil organisms in ecosystem succession? Are microbes ‘drivers’ or ‘passengers’ of succession?

We employ full-factorial set of the following experimental treatments:

  • Transplanting to the initially bare-sand dune area soils originated in dune ecosystems at different stages of successional development: sand dunes, grassland, dune forest
  • Transplanted soils are sterilized with gamma radiation
  • We add (or not) mycorrhizal fungi to all these soils, a group of soil organisms that is considered to play a major role in plant community development.

For scientific inquiries and collaborations please contact