Aboveground-Belowground Interactions

The BES (British Ecological Society) Plant-Soil-Ecosystems Special Interest Group and IMBE (Mediterranean Institute of Biodiversity and Ecology) are working together to host this joint three-day science meeting on aboveground-belowground interactions on the 11th-13 May 2022. They aim to highlight the most recent research within this subject and to promote interactions amongst researchers.

The event is open to anybody with an interest in plant-soil interactions and will be held in Marseille, France. It will consist of two days of talks (11th and 12th) including selected presentations from abstract submissions and four invited keynote speakers, poster sessions and an optional conference dinner on the 11th.

A fieldtrip to the O3HP has also been arranged for the 13th of May, where you will be able to explore and learn about a long-term experimental that reduces the amount of precipitation on a mature downy oak forest by up to 30% with a dynamic roof. This experimental site is home to several research projects that focus on aboveground-belowground interactions. This site is situated in the Luberon national park, 1h30min North of Marseille, and is hosted by the CNRS and IMBE.

The event will cover aboveground-belowground interactions under different themes:

• Litter decomposition (Keynote by Stephan Hättenschwiler)
• Plant-soil feedbacks (Keynote by Ciska Veen)
• Mycorrhiza (Keynote by Tom Parker)
• Roots (Keynote by Marina Semtsenko).

Each session will finish with a workshop-like discussion to explore current ideas and areas for further research. A poster session encompassing all of these themes will be held before the conference dinner.

Programme

Wednesday 11th of May 2022

• 9.00-9.45 Registration & Coffee
• 9.45-10.00 Meeting and session opening
• 10.00-12.30 Session 1 – Plant-soil feedbacks – Keynote by Ciska Veen
• 12.30-14.00 Lunch
• 14.00-17.20 Session 2 – Litter decomposition – Keynote by Stephan Hättenschwiler
• 17.20-19.00 Drink reception and Poster session
• 20.00 Gala dinner

Thursday 12th of May 2022

• 9.00-12.00 Session 3 – Mycorrhiza – Keynote by Tom Parker
• 12.30-14.00 Lunch and poster session
• 14.00-17.00 Session 4 – Roots and rhizosphere – Keynote by Marina Semchenko

Friday 13th of May 2022

• 8.30 Bus pick up at the Pharo (TBC)
• 10.30-11.00 Welcome at the O3HP
• 11.00-12.30 Visit of the O3HP
• 12.30-13.30 Picnic
• 14.00 Bus pick up, ETA 16.00 at Marseille

Register Now - Aboveground-Belowground Interactions - British Ecological Society