Plant-soil feedbacks as drivers of seedling establishment in tropical and sub-tropical forests

This Pump-Priming proposal builds specifically on our NERC research in tropical forests, as well as other NERC and RCUK funding, to develop a new collaboration with a leading Chinese research group (led by Prof Yu at Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou) to generate outstanding research on how plant-soil feedbacks mediate seedling establishment and tree diversity in sub-tropical forests. Our proposal takes advantage of Prof Yu's high-impact research findings on tree seedling recruitment with our own mechanistic approaches used to understand the ecology of mycorrhizal fungi, which are globally prevalent and key symbionts in these forests. The proposal will enable PI-researcher exchanges to design field experiments, first, to interrogate existing datasets on plant community composition and soil properties, and second, to devise field experiments to test in situ ideas developed previously either in pot-based experiments, or in grassland. Specifically, we will use unique field experimental facilities and data made available by Prof Yu to test how mycorrhizal type and mycorrhizal fungal hyphal networks facilitate seedling establishment. Moreover, integration of field experiments with existing unique datasets on soil and plant properties (led by Prof Yu), together with application of cutting-edge isotope tracers (led by Prof Johnson) will make a step-change in understanding how soil biota influences seedling establishment in realistic conditions. The Pump Priming proposal will provide the ground-work for development of new collaborative research proposals, as well as generating exciting new synthetic datasets and outputs. The durability of the collaboration will be aided immediately by significant investment from our partners, including allocation of Chinese-funded research studentships to further develop our findings and ensure continuity beyond the lifetime of the proposal.

Planned Impact
This proposal concerns gaining a greater understanding of how seedlings are recruited in sub-tropical and tropical forests. The focus is on the interactions between plants, root symbionts and soil properties. Our work will generate new knowledge that will inform new ecological theory and provide important insights to help conservationists. We will extend the impact plan of the current NERC project that this IOF is affiliated with. Specifically, our project will build on the activities of the related NERC Discovery grant, but include more focus on Chinese forest systems, which are globally hugely important. We will help understand the mechanisms that maintain the remarkable richness of tree species found in pristine tropical forests, and also encourage conservation organisations to have broad perspectives on how to conserve these keystone ecosystems by appreciating plant-soil feedbacks. Because it impacts on several aspects of tropical forest ecology and sustainability it will be of interest to a broad range of end-users and stakeholders.

1. Politicians in China and the UK who seek to find a balance between timber production and forest sustainability

We will interact with key provincial Chinese agencies, notably the Guangdong Province Forestry Department, who are charged with conserving and managing forest services, see https://www.gdf.gov.cn/english/index.php
They have an active afforestation policy and our work will be of direct relevance to this aim. We will use our local collaborators to influence conservation and management programmes through invitation of key staff to the Heishiding Nature Reserve including during our research exchange visits to China. We will organise presentations and round-table discussions to illustrate the key findings from our work, and how these can be translated to management practices.


2. Private sector companies who seek to exploit tropical forests for commercial reasons

Examples: Sustainable timber production from forests is dependent on maintenance of functioning biogeochemical cycles that are themselves heavily reliant on plant-microbial interactions. Although the role and importance of mycorrhizal interactions will not be well-known to timber producers, they will be understood by technical staff in forest nurseries who generate seedlings for re-planting programmes. To reach this audience we will target training in mycorrhizal inoculation techniques for staff of the nurseries that supply seedlings for large-scale rehabilitation of degraded logged forests.

3. National and international organisations who have remits for conservation of tropical diversity, e.g. WWF, International Mycological Association, International Union for Conservation of Nature.

Examples: We are already active in the IUCN's Species Survival Commission, and our research will therefore inform the development of conservation assesments and advice that feeds into the international conservation policy agenda. Data on the identity, role and conservation status of tropical fungi are currently very limited, therefore the new data from our project will achieve a high profile in discussions around conservation policy for tropical fungi. Indirectly, our work will also be relevant to the needs of those with interests in understanding the causes and importance of plant diversity more generally, including the UK Biodiversity Research Advisory Group (UK BRAG) who highlight the urgent need to understand the link between plant and microbial functional diversity.

4. The general public through educational activities associated with the project (see Pathways to Impact)