Biogeochemistry Update
Stephen C. Hart & Asmeret Berhe
SSCZO Annual Meeting
Aug. 4, 2014
2013-2014 Progress
• M.S. Student Emma McCorkle completed her
thesis research (to be presented later)
• REU Student Alex Newman continued analysis
of water samples for organic C and N (to be
presented later)
• Initiated “Dust Project” and received an NSF
RAPID grant (Emma Aronson PI, collaborators
Cliff Riebe , Sarah Aciego; to be presented
later)
2013-2014 Progress
• Continued Monitoring of Dale Johnson’s
infamous “Hot Spot-Hot Moment” plots
2013-2014 Progress
• Successful recruitment of four new SSCZO
(biogeochemistry-oriented) Ph.D. students
– Nicholas Dove (Hart Advisor)
– Paige Austin (Hart Advisor)
– Kimber Moreland (Berhe Advisor)
– Morgan Barnes (co-advised by Hart and Berhe)
2014-2015 Plans
• Specific directions depend, in part, on interests of
recently recruited Ph.D. students
• Some new possibilities include:
– Mechanisms responsible for hot-spot, hot moment
biogeochemical phenomena
– Estimating plant fine-root production along the altitudinal
gradient
– Role of mycorrhizae in water and nutrient acquisition and
how mycorrhizal diversity changes along altitudinal
gradient
– Impact of the KREW land mgmt. treatments on soil erosion
and C, N and P retention within low-order watersheds