Written by Irena Koelemeijer
The drought experiment has started! In this project, we look at the effects of severe summer drought on boreal understory species: two mosses, one liverwort, three vascular plants (including an orchid), and a plant-mycorrhizae relationship. We will follow these species throughout this years’ and next years’ growing season.
We also want to learn how the effects of a drought can be buffered. Canopy cover of the trees above and soil moisture are likely two important factors. We have therefore placed our 25 rainout shelters in open places and darker places in the forest.
Me (Irena) and Chaima - a French internship student visiting our lab – were out in the field to install the plastic roofs in the first week of June. We will go back halfway through July to end the experiment and collect data.
