Project properties
Title Nitrogen deposition, plant traits, and carbon storage
Group Plant Ecology and Nature Conservation Group
Project type thesis
Credits 36
Supervisor(s)
Examiner(s) Fons van der Plas
Contact info fons.vanderplas@wur.nl
Begin date 2023/01/01
End date 2026/12/31
Description Natural grasslands store large amounts of carbon, and the vast majority of this carbon is stored belowground. But in the Netherlands, various nature areas are exposed to high levels of nitrogen deposition. How does this affect the carbon storage potential of grasslands? And what is the role of plants and their roots in carbon storage?

Here, you will use a fertilization experiment to investigate the role of changes in plant communities in determining how soil carbon storage responds to nitrogen fertilization. Specifically, you will test to which extent changes in the root traits (e.g. their thickness, or ability to collaborate with mycorrhiza) of grassland species can help explaining how soil carbon storage responds to fertilization.
Used skills
Requirements