Microbial ecology

For many years the department has enjoyed an international reputation for pioneering research into community ecology of ectomycorrhizal fungi. Today, we have greatly diversified our fields of interest to include bacteria, other soil organisms and their interactions with the abiotic and biotic environment.

We use cutting edge molecular techniques to test ecological hypotheses, bridging the traditional gap between cell biology and ecology. We focus on the ecophysiological properties of organisms, their colonisation patterns, spatiotemporal distributions and production of extracellular enzymes and metabolites.