The importance of plant-microbiome systems on carbon and nitrogen processes is perhaps most pronounced in Sphagnum moss dominated ecosystems, which occupy 3% of the Earth’s land surface yet store approximately 25% of terrestrial carbon. Much of the nitrogen needed to support Sphagnum comes from a symbiosis with microbes, yet we don’t know how the symbiosis forms or if it will withstand changing environmental conditions. In collaboration with JGI, the team aims to determine the underlying plant and microbial genetics mediating this symbiosis at elevated temperatures.
Proposer: David Weston, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Proposal: Elucidating Sphagnum Microbiome Genetic Interactions for Improved Plant Growth to Warming