We use cookies on our website. Some are necessary for the operation of the website. You can also allow cookies for statistical purposes. You can adjust the data protection settings or agree to all cookies directly.
Data Protection Declaration
Imprint
Investigation of the soil and root layer system under grassland
Project
Project code: JKI-PB-08-1318
Contract period: 01.01.2021
- 31.12.2023
Purpose of research: Experimental development
The development and characteristics of the root system in grassland is studied far less intensively than analyses of aboveground biomass, despite its high importance for water and nutrient uptake and carbon sequestration. Root growth is even less frequently considered in breeding programs because of the enormous experimental effort involved. Plant roots are known to influence microbiology, soil chemistry, and soil structure, among other factors. Root growth is very closely related to plant growth and productivity and is one of the main sources of carbon for agricultural soils. Therefore, significant genetic potential exists to increase yields through adapted root systems as well as to promote regulatory ecosystem services. However, methodological difficulties exist to date to analyze and quantify the influence of root development on soil processes. The efficient uptake of water and nutrients by plants is becoming more and more important in the context of climate change, nitrogen pollution in groundwater and the finite resource of phosphorus fertilizers. In this project, the technique of micro X-ray computed tomography (µCT) will be applied to simultaneously analyze the three-dimensional root system as well as the pore space structure in undisturbed soil as a function of management and over time annually (Kuka et al., 2013). This project will accelerate the development of new tools to better identify ecosystem services of, for example, carbon sequestration of sustainable grassland use under variable environmental conditions and quantify them. These findings can then be incorporated into breeding programs.
Kuka, K.; Illerhaus, B.; Fox, C. A.; Joschko, M. (2013): X-ray computed microtomography for the study of the soil-root relationship in grassland soils. Vadose Zone Journal 12(4): Art. 14. https://doi.org/10.2136/vzj2013.01.0014
Section overview
Subjects
- Grassland
- Climate Change
