Quantification of Organic Nitrogen use in FACE and Culture Experiments

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Much of plant nitrogen supply, particularly for trees, is supplied through symbiotic (mycorrhizal) fungi that obtain sugars from their host trees and in return transfer nitrogen. However, methodological difficulties have limited quantification of the role that mycorrhizal fungi play in meeting plant nitrogen demands. In this project, ratios of carbon and nitrogen isotopes from two field experiments at Duke University and at Rhinelander, Wisconsin will be used to assess organic nitrogen uptake by different mycorrhizal fungi and plants. This information will be combined with laboratory studies on mycorrhizal plants to provide the first realistic and quantitative estimates of organic nitrogen use. New methodologies being developed for this project will determine whether patterns of organic nitrogen use differ across ecosystems and across species of mycorrhizal fungi.This work will develop and perfect new methods to quantify organic nitrogen use by plants and mycorrhizal fungi which will transform how researchers think about nitrogen cycling in the soil and its connections to soil carbon. This has implications for forest management. Educational work will involve collaboration with several local high school teachers to expand their use of outdoor classrooms and use of fungi as a tool to teach biology. Outreach to the public will also include educating Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) naturalists on fungal roles in forests as well as leading AMC nature walks. The project will involve training for a Ph.D. student and several undergraduates, including recruitment of students from Elizabeth City State University, a historically black institution with strong academic ties to UNH.