Projects - dr. J (Jasper) van Ruijven
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PhD project Lisette Bakker - Root traits in a changing world
Plant communities have to cope with environmental changes that can cause dramatic reductions in the primary productivity and ecosystems stability, among which biodiversity loss and drought events. In this project, we aim to determine the factors that make plant communities resilient to extreme summer drought by looking at the diversity in certain plant functional traits. The focus will be on root traits, as they play an important role in the water and nutrient uptake. In a common garden experiment, plant monoculture plots of 16 grassland species are established to measure the plant traits and responses to a simulated summer drought. More information: Lisette Bakker/Liesje Mommer