Effects of forage plant diversity on the activity, diversity and function of the soil micro-food web in the Mediterranean area.
This work is part of the international research consortium “Sown forage mixtures for sustainable agroecosystems in the Mediterranean area” (SUSFORAGE). The overall goals are to verify the soil benefits under extreme conditions and drought in Mediterranean polycropping systems and to describe the mechanisms that contribute to the soil benefits. Within this framework the present project wants to characterize the soil nematode communities, which includes population density, diversity, food web structure, ecological indices and metabolic footprints Moreover, the impact on the soil microbial biomass and community structure is assessed as well as plant health in regard to plant parasitic nematodes.
Project by Prof. Dr. Liliane Rueß and M.Sc. Martin Ewald in cooperation with Prof. Dr. M.-Teresa Sebastià (Forest Science and Technology Centre of Catalonia); Dr. Angela Ribas (Centre for Ecological Research and Forestry Applications); Dr. Rodrigue El Balaa (University of Balamand); Dr. Tomaž Žnidaršič (Agricultural Institute of Slovenia) and Dr. Katja Klumpp (Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique).
Funded by: