Risk, impact on productivity and control of Mycosphaerella infections in plantations in plantations of E. nitens and E. globulus. Mycosphaerella, a defoliating fungal pathogen of eucalypts, has the potential to change markedly the economics of plantation development. This research will explore the fundamental physiological and pathological processes associated with the disease, link these findings into established process-based models of forest plantation growth for predictive purposes and util ....Risk, impact on productivity and control of Mycosphaerella infections in plantations in plantations of E. nitens and E. globulus. Mycosphaerella, a defoliating fungal pathogen of eucalypts, has the potential to change markedly the economics of plantation development. This research will explore the fundamental physiological and pathological processes associated with the disease, link these findings into established process-based models of forest plantation growth for predictive purposes and utilise hyperspectral remote sensing techniques to scale impact from the tree to plantation level. In doing this research not only are questions of key importance to an important and growing industry sector addressed, but an innovative approach to disease impact assessment established and a skills base and methodology widely applicable to other tree and agricultural disease problems established.Read moreRead less
Critical windows: understanding changes in eating and physical activity over the transition from secondary school to young adulthood. This project will explain changes in eating, physical activity and sedentary behaviour during the critical period of transition from secondary school to young adulthood. It will provide important information on how we can assist adolescents to maintain a healthy lifestyle over a time characterised by several major life changes.
Determining generic indicators of stress in eucalypt leaves for application to the remote sensing of canopy condition and productivity modelling. Biotic and abiotic stresses induce generic alterations of leaf chemistry (e.g. chlorophyll, anthocyanins). We will explore the behaviour of eucalypt leaf reflectance to changes in leaf cellular chemistry and structure arising from exposure to a range of stressful factors. We will relate leaf reflectance to physiological processes using a research radia ....Determining generic indicators of stress in eucalypt leaves for application to the remote sensing of canopy condition and productivity modelling. Biotic and abiotic stresses induce generic alterations of leaf chemistry (e.g. chlorophyll, anthocyanins). We will explore the behaviour of eucalypt leaf reflectance to changes in leaf cellular chemistry and structure arising from exposure to a range of stressful factors. We will relate leaf reflectance to physiological processes using a research radiation interception model. We will report on a) the potential integration of data related to stress, into process-based models for eucalypt plantation growth and b) the exploitation of generic reflectance indicators of stress in the remote acquisition of high resolution multispectral imagery with potential to spatially quantify plantation eucalypt health.Read moreRead less
Understanding plant uptake of organic and inorganic nitrogen for optimal fertiliser application in forestry. Nitrogen (N) in soils occurs in both organic and inorganic forms. Plants can take up inorganic N - nitrate and ammonium - but, on average, these account for only 5% of the soluble N in soils. Recent evidence suggests that plants may be able to tap into some of the 95% of N that occurs in organic forms. We will investigate the importance of organic N uptake for two plantation Eucalyptus sp ....Understanding plant uptake of organic and inorganic nitrogen for optimal fertiliser application in forestry. Nitrogen (N) in soils occurs in both organic and inorganic forms. Plants can take up inorganic N - nitrate and ammonium - but, on average, these account for only 5% of the soluble N in soils. Recent evidence suggests that plants may be able to tap into some of the 95% of N that occurs in organic forms. We will investigate the importance of organic N uptake for two plantation Eucalyptus species by tracing the uptake of different N forms by bacteria, fungi and eucalypts. This information will redefine what is meant by 'available N' and will guide the development of a new test for soil N status.Read moreRead less
Linking environmental stress in pine plantations to bark stripping by browsers and fungal attack: developing novel options for management. The Australian forest industry, under the pressure of certification requirements, is moving towards a more integrated, reduced chemical, environmentally sustainable approach to protecting forest. Novel insights into the stress biology of pine will provide valuable information that will underpin efforts to reduce risk e.g. the matching of specific genotypes to ....Linking environmental stress in pine plantations to bark stripping by browsers and fungal attack: developing novel options for management. The Australian forest industry, under the pressure of certification requirements, is moving towards a more integrated, reduced chemical, environmentally sustainable approach to protecting forest. Novel insights into the stress biology of pine will provide valuable information that will underpin efforts to reduce risk e.g. the matching of specific genotypes to site so that pest resistance can be maintained even under environmental stress conditions. By understanding the 'attraction' factor of stressed pine to wallabies we will develop and test an urgently and nationally required diversionary feed for this browser. Lethal control involving poison is becoming increasingly restricted.Read moreRead less
Understanding and manipulating stress physiology of eucalypt seedlings to improve survival and growth. Eucalyptus globulus and E. nitens are the major species being established to meet the 2020 Vision (Anon 1999) of trebling Australia's plantation estate. Seedling mortality and/or reduced growth after planting, linked to the transition from ideal growing conditions in the nursery to stressful conditions (high drought and browsing risk) at the planting sites, significantly increase the costs of ....Understanding and manipulating stress physiology of eucalypt seedlings to improve survival and growth. Eucalyptus globulus and E. nitens are the major species being established to meet the 2020 Vision (Anon 1999) of trebling Australia's plantation estate. Seedling mortality and/or reduced growth after planting, linked to the transition from ideal growing conditions in the nursery to stressful conditions (high drought and browsing risk) at the planting sites, significantly increase the costs of plantation production. By investigating physiological mechanisms of seedlings and their responses to drought and browsing stress during establishment in the field, methods for the production of seedlings acclimated to drought or browsing stress will be developed. The research outcomes will help maximise the financial return on over $28 M per annum being invested by the 8 project partners in seedling production and planting over 80, 000 ha per year for the next 19 years to meet the requirements of Vision 2020.Read moreRead less
Ion transporters regulating plant adaptive responses to salinity and the modes of their control by compatible solutes in plant cells. Plants respond to saline conditions by a significant elevation in the level of compatible solutes in the cytosol. It appears that these solutes are not directly involved in conventional osmoprotection, but instead have a regulatory role in cell metabolism. This project will apply a range of state-of-the-art biophysical and molecular techniques to investigate the m ....Ion transporters regulating plant adaptive responses to salinity and the modes of their control by compatible solutes in plant cells. Plants respond to saline conditions by a significant elevation in the level of compatible solutes in the cytosol. It appears that these solutes are not directly involved in conventional osmoprotection, but instead have a regulatory role in cell metabolism. This project will apply a range of state-of-the-art biophysical and molecular techniques to investigate the modes of control exercised by compatible solutes over the activity of major plasma membrane transporters involved in plant adaptive responses to salinity. The work will substantially advance our understanding of salt tolerance and will provide a sound basis for genetic engineering of salt tolerant crops.Read moreRead less
Cellular automata model of forest stands to predict size-class distribution and survival. Existing forest growth models predict well stand level processes such as growth. However, they provide little information on forest structure and how this affects commercial forest products, risks of growing plantations and stand dynamics that determine carbon sequestration and water-use and result in age-related decline in productivity and self-thinning. By using newly developed technology to quantify in ....Cellular automata model of forest stands to predict size-class distribution and survival. Existing forest growth models predict well stand level processes such as growth. However, they provide little information on forest structure and how this affects commercial forest products, risks of growing plantations and stand dynamics that determine carbon sequestration and water-use and result in age-related decline in productivity and self-thinning. By using newly developed technology to quantify inter-tree competition, tree level resource supply, between tree genetic differences and the importance of chance events this project will draw on complexity theory to develop an innovative model that partitions stand level production to forecast the growth and size of individual trees.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE210100606
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$450,400.00
Summary
Effects of environmental change on seafood micronutrients: a SE Asian focus. This project aims to track variability in flows of essential micronutrients through marine food webs, to quantify how environmental changes will affect micronutrient supply to humans in seafood – findings that will be highly significant as governments grapple with increases in both malnutrition and ecological degradation. Expected outcomes: world-first models for accurately estimating nutrient production from SE Asian r ....Effects of environmental change on seafood micronutrients: a SE Asian focus. This project aims to track variability in flows of essential micronutrients through marine food webs, to quantify how environmental changes will affect micronutrient supply to humans in seafood – findings that will be highly significant as governments grapple with increases in both malnutrition and ecological degradation. Expected outcomes: world-first models for accurately estimating nutrient production from SE Asian reef fisheries up to 2050, under conditions of predicted climate change. Major expected benefits: new capacity to plan for food and nutrition security into an uncertain future, for Australia, our region, and beyond; with improvements to human nutrition and health, in accord with UN Sustainable Development Goal 2 (Zero Hunger).Read moreRead less