Riddles of the Roots: How trees interact with soil bacteria and fungi to manage forests from below

Research on the forest underworld is significantly changing our fundamental understanding of ecology and non-animal organisms. Organisms are not only competing with each other as was once thought. Instead, large networks of symbiotic fungi, bacteria, and trees are supplying each other with the resources they need to thrive.

In order to gain a better understanding of the symbiotic biological processes happening below the ground, we are monitoring the exchange of water and carbon between the forest trees, atmosphere, soil, and the fungal and bacterial species attached to them. Combining molecular identification, metabolomic analysis, and stable isotope labeling, we can now tell the extent of mycorrhizal networks in the soil, the rate at which they transfer matter between trees, and the chemical compounds used by tree roots to communicate with the soil microbiota.

As we learn more about the root zone symbiotic processes, we find the tight interactions between the above- and below-ground organisms. New insights from this research will help give scientists a more complete picture of forest systems and their role in the environment.