The influence of organisms that live in the soil on the nutrients available for plant growth will be examined at a seminar this week at The Macaulay Institute.

The seminar, entitled ‘Ecological linkages between plant and soil biological communities’ by Professor Richard Bardgett from the Institute of Environmental and Natural Sciences, Department of Biological Sciences, Lancaster University, takes place at 2pm on Wednesday 9 March at The Macaulay Institute.

Commenting on the topic under discussion, Professor Bardgett said: “Soil organisms are intimately linked to the plant community. Not only do plants provide carbon and other nutrients to the soil biological community, but plant roots also act as a host for many soil organisms.

“These organisms in turn influence plant communities indirectly by recycling dead plant material thus making nutrients available for plant use, and directly through the action of the root- associated organisms which selectively influence the growth of plant species, thereby affecting plant productivity and community structure.

“The increasing recognition of the influence of these components on each other has led to there being much interest amongst ecologists in the role played by these interactions above and below ground in controlling ecosystem processes and properties.

“In this talk I will demonstrate, using data from recent experiments, how soil organisms and soil food web interactions can influence soil nutrient availability to, and the growth of, plants through a variety of pathways. The overall aim of the talk is to illustrate the importance of soil and their interactions with plants as major structuring forces in plant communities.”

Anyone interested in attending this Wednesday’s Macaulay seminar should contact Jane Lund on tel: 01224 498200, email:j.lund@macaulay.ac.uk.

The Macaulay Institute is the premier land use research institute in the UK. Two hundred and seventy staff are based at the Macaulay Institute at Craigiebuckler in Aberdeen. The Macaulay Institute aims to be an international leader in research on the use of rural land resources for the benefit of people and the environment and is involved in research across the globe; from Scotland to Chile and China. More about the Macaulay Institute can be found at www.macaulay.ac.uk .

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