I am an ecosystem ecologist with a passion for high latitude ecosystems and interested in the interplay of plants and their environment. My work in arctic tundra and peatlands focuses on belowground plant processes, such as root phenology and root production, and often includes measurements outside the summer season. Some of my current projects are outlined below.
Belowground plant responses to grazing and snow cover changes in boreal ecosystems
Boreal ecosystems are shaped by two major, interacting global change factors: changes in the thickness of the snow cover in winter, and grazing by large herbivores (reindeer). The EcoClimate Experiment at the Oulanka Research Station is a large, long-term experiment which includes snow addition and removal, as well as herbivore exclosures in two habitats: a dry oligotrophic Scots pine forest and a nutrient rich fen site. My goal in this project is to study how reindeer grazing and changes in snow cover influence root dynamics and I will provide non-destructive monitoring data on root dynamics (production, phenology, mortality, turnover) to be linked with other biogeochemical processes at the site. Read more. The EcoClimate experiment owned and maintained by the Oulanka Research Station (University of Oulu) under the leadership of Riku Paavola, and I additionally collaborate with Maria Väisänen (University of Oulu). PhD student Johannes Cunow leads this project.
Root production and decomposition in temperate peatlands
My postdoc project in the Experimental Plant Ecology Group at the University of Greifswald, Germany, was in the joint research project WETSCAPES. We quantified the production and decomposition of above- and belowground biomass in temperate peatlands, with a special focus on root processes. The emphasis of WETSCAPES was on developing scientific foundations for a sustainable management of degraded and then re-wetted wetlands. For this, we used destructive and non-destructive measurements, both in the field and in a controlled mesocosm experiment. Advisor: Juergen Kreyling (University of Greifswald) Funded by the European Union.
From cast to climate – earthworm invasion into subarctic tundra
Earthworms are powerful ecosystem engineers that strongly influence plant-soil interactions and ultimately ecosystem processes through burrowing and feeding activities. They are also successful invaders, as documented in their human-induced invasion from Europe to North America. A decrease in climatic constraints on earthworms with global warming, together with an increase in human activity, might aid earthworm expansion past northern borders of their natural habitat into Fennoscandian tundra. Yet, range expansions of earthworms within Europe and their consequences on ecosystem function remain largely unexplored. We use a mesocosm set-up to investigate consequences of earthworm invasion into different plant communities in subarctic tundra. Collaborators: Jonatan Klaminder (Umeå University), Eveline Krab (SLU Uppsala), Johan Olofsson (Umeå University), Maja Sundqvist (Umeå University), Maria Väisänen (University of Oulu) Funded by the Göran Gustafsson Foundation and the Climate Impacts Research Centre.
Bridging the gap between root ecology and root physiology
During my PostDoc at Umeå University and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU Umeå), I used a unique combination of ecological and physiological methods to study the driving forces behind plant root production under field conditions. We combined non-destructive measurements of root phenology with analyses of the root growth regulating hormone auxin in sampled root tips to improve our understanding of root growth. Specifically, we examined how root growth and auxin levels depend on time of year, temperature, rooting depth, and the production of fresh photosynthates in a subarctic peatland. In collaboration with Philipp Semenchuk (The Arctic University of Norway), advisors: Karin Ljung (SLU Umeå) and Johan Olofsson (Umeå University)
Fine root dynamics in northern ecosystems
My PhD work at the Climate Impacts Research Centre, Umeå University, Sweden, focused on fine root dynamics in northern ecosystems, and how these are influenced by various climate change factors. With that, I discovered more about the hidden part of the plants below the surface and if root responses to global change differ from shoots. This is of special importance in high latitudes, where the majority of living plant biomass is situated belowground. Experiments and observational studies were located in (sub-) arctic tundra and in boreal forest. Advisors: Ann Milbau (Research Institute for Nature and Forest INBO), Roland Jansson (Umeå University) and Scott D. Wilson (University of Regina)