PUBLIC LECTURE: UWA Albany Public Lecture

Deep-rooted eucalyptus, tree and shrub members of the Banksia family engage in mining deeply located minerals elements and construct therefrom “pavements” of clay, ferricrete, humicrete or calcium carbonate in upper regions of their respective rooting profiles. Presence of such layers optimizes access by the perpetrating species to resources of water and minerals at the expense of companion understory species of the ecosystem. Professor Pate will outline the physiological processes and mechanisms deployed by trees during pavement construction, including possible roles of microorganisms. In some cases massive effects are observed on pH of soil profiles and ground waters.