Small trees, big impact: Rethinking how trees and their underground partners shape their soils
Adam Weiler, Indiana University, discusses his article: Seeing the forest for all the trees: Mycorrhizal-associated nutrient economies are modulated by stem density and the synchrony between overstorey and understorey tree communities When we think about how forests influence the soil beneath them, it’s easy to picture the towering overstorey trees that define a woodland. These…...
[read more]Thu, 18 Dec 2025 05:34:18 +0000
Earlier snowmelt impacts carbon cycling in montane meadows
Olivia Vought, University of Michigan, discusses her article: Earlier snowmelt increases the strength of the carbon sink in montane meadows unequally across the growing season In cold, mountain regions, the climate is warming, causing snow to melt earlier. In fact, winters are changing faster than the warmer seasons in many seasonally cold places. However, how…...
[read more]Tue, 16 Dec 2025 06:06:30 +0000
More Snow, Fewer Species: A 16-Year Story from a Tibetan Meadow
Juntao Zhu, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, discusses his article: Loss of resource-conservative species affects plant phylogenetic and functional structure under long-term snow addition The alpine meadows on the Tibetan Plateau are unique ecosystems shaped by a harsh climate and traditional yak grazing. But as the…...
[read more]Thu, 11 Dec 2025 06:34:17 +0000
How the strategies of bilberry roots to access nutrients vary at small scales and with changes in nutrient availability
Barbara Meyers, University of Freiburg in Germany, discusses her article: Soil nutrient availability rather than spatial nutrient heterogeneity shapes the intraspecific response of root architectural, morphological and mycorrhizal traits in Vaccinium myrtillus Roots make up for a large proportion of plant biomass and play a central role in several plant functions: accessing water and nutrients…...
[read more]Tue, 09 Dec 2025 06:25:55 +0000
Experimental resource supplementation shifts ant-mediated defense on silver cholla
Jenna Braun, York University, Toronto, discusses her article: Experimental resource supplementation shifts ant-mediated defense on silver cholla Extra-floral nectaries (EFN) play an important role within mutualisms between plants and ants. In this relationship, ants receive a nutrient-rich food source from plants in exchange for defending the plant from herbivores. Ant species are not equally effective…...
[read more]Thu, 04 Dec 2025 08:00:00 +0000
How plants relate to each other when they share pollinators
Yong-Deng He and Zhong-Ming Ye, Wuhan Botanical Garden of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, discuss their article: Disentangling the mechanisms behind indirect interactions between plants via shared pollinators: Effects of neutral and niche-based processes In biodiversity hotspots like the alpine meadows of north-western Yunnan, more than 100 flowering species can bloom in a single season.…...
[read more]Tue, 02 Dec 2025 06:20:15 +0000
Will invasive species spread faster under climate change? It’s complicated
Ranjan Muthukrishnan, St. Olaf College in the USA, discusses his article: Warming conditions reduce the impacts of an aquatic invasive macrophyte across a latitudinal gradient The challenge Climate change and the spread of invasive species are two major drivers of global ecological change. As with many ecological stressors, an important question is: what is the…...
[read more]Thu, 27 Nov 2025 06:40:57 +0000
How tree growth strategies shift with age and climate: What it means for forest management
Rongxu Shan and Zilong Ma from Sun Yat-sen University, and Han Y.H. Chen from Lakehead University discuss their article: Functional traits and individual tree growth relationship weakens with stand development but strengthens with increasing temperature. Forests are far more than just collections of trees: they are vibrant, dynamic ecosystems where each tree’s growth strategy plays…...
[read more]Tue, 25 Nov 2025 06:14:24 +0000
Why does heather self-organise into wave-like patterns? A mathematical investigation
Toyo Vignal, Okinawan Institute of Science and Technology in Japan, discusses her article: Surviving the winds through pattern formation: Mathematical modelling of heather stripes in Scotland. In some remote areas of the Scottish highlands, one can encounter intriguing vegetation patterns consisting of regularly arranged plants and bare soil. The first time I encountered such patterns…...
[read more]Thu, 20 Nov 2025 06:16:11 +0000
Striking shifts in the timing of bryophyte spore dispersal: What 35 years of airborne DNA revealed about climate change
Fia Bengtsson, Lund University and Norwegian Institute of Nature Research, discusses her article: Rapid shifts in bryophyte phenology revealed by airborne eDNA Most of us walk past mosses and liverworts without really noticing them. But these small plants, known as bryophytes, are vital to ecosystems, including in Arctic and sub-Arctic regions. They retain water, regulate…...
[read more]Tue, 18 Nov 2025 05:33:37 +0000
