Root ingrowth in the bog.
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Given the difficulty of distinguishing between living and dead roots in the anaerobic bog, root ingrowth cores constructed of rigid polypropylene tubes and filled with commercial peat from a nearby bog are being used to capture newly-grown roots seasonally, across microtopographic positions, and throughout the peat profile.
Upon return to the laboratory, roots are removed from the peat, sorted by species, and separated into absorptive (first three root orders) and transport (4+ orders) fine roots, scanned for morphological characteristics, and analyzed for chemical composition. We hypothesize that root growth will increase with warming and drying, but that this response will be species-specific. |
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Publications. |
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This research is funded by the Office of Biological and Environmental Research in the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science.