microbially-mediated feedback in A lowland tropical forest

In this study, we are testing how the plant (seedling) microbiome is shaped by surrounding adult tree species and soil properties. With support from KU Endowment and the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI), we are sequencing soil, root and leaf mutualists and pathogens to understand what drives accumulation of microbes on and around plants. A unique part of this study is that there is repeat sampling later in seedling development, enabling an understanding of accumulation of certain microbial taxa over time.  This work is in collaboration with several staff scientists and others at STRI, as well as former STRI post-doc John Schroeder and Dan Petticord at Cornell. 

Our field experimental set up in the Gigante Peninsula in Panama.

Janika, who did her Master's supporting this work after passing her defense!