Projects
Decamouflaging plant blindness. Use of plants in contemporary art to reclaim histories of the weak. KU Leuven
Plants tend to be overlooked by humans in general. The term 'plant blindness' - inability to notice plants unless they become resources useful for people: medicines, food, textiles etc. - was coined by botanist James H. Wandersee and biologist Elisabeth E. Schussler, but a similar mechanism was also recognized in traditional art history. According to art historian Giovani Aloi, plants either serve as a backdrop lacking individual ...
The role of interactions between plants and soil microbes as drivers of non-native plant invasions in cold-climate ecosystems. University of Antwerp
Phytosanitary status of organisms harmful to plants and plant products Research Institute for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
The aim of this project is to determine the correct phytosanitary status of 13 well-defined pest insects, one harmful plant fungus, one nematode and one plant virus, and that specifically for the Belgian territory. Taken as a whole, we suspect that they can pose a threat to (parts of) fruit and vegetable growing and tree nurseries. The problem is that so far no extensive survey has been set up ...
Plant root effects on erosion of sandy soils in a temperate climate. A trait-based methodology to select native plants for biological soil conservation measures KU Leuven
Soil erosion is a major problem leading to severe land degradation problems. To control these soil erosion processes, plant species can be used. Both above- and below-ground biomass can help to protect the soil. Plant roots can be very effective in stabilizing the soil against concentrated flow erosion and shallow mass movements. Most research on the erosion-reducing potential of plant roots was conducted on loamy soils and at present, ...
Characterisation of a novel branch in plant immunity signalling and assessment of its utility to engineer tomato and other dicot crop plants with increased pathogen resistance Ghent University
Plant immunity, for instance resistance to bacterial and fungal pathogens, involves the action of
phytohormones, of which salicylic acid (SA) and jasmonate (JA) are considered the most important.
The past decades, we have seen spectacular progress in our understanding of SA and JA biology. Yet,
many key questions remain unanswered, particularly on the possible complexity in immunity
signalling across the plant kingdom, ...
Valorization of whole plant silage of cereals, with or without leguminous plants, on the dairy farm with specific attention to rumen health HOGENT
Phytosanitary status of organisms harmfull to plants and plant products Research Institute for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
Plant diseases and pests present in nearby or further afield do not stop at our borders. Eight potentially new threats are being studied in the HARMSTAT project, with the aim of determining their status for Belgium while gathering knowledge about their characteristics (which host plants, which reproductive preferences, etc) so that the authorities can issue measures if necessary. Specifically ...
The role of plant hormones in controlling the phenotype of UV-B acclimated plants. University of Antwerp
Newly emerging risks of pests for plants and plant products in Belgium Research Institute for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
The aim of this project is to determine the phytosanitary status in Belgium for 6 regulated plant pathogenic fungi and for 5 insect pests (present/absent). For the fungi (and oomycetes) these are: Colletotrichum fructicola and C. siamense on apple, pear and strawberry; Phytophthora pluvialis on Douglas fir; Phytophthora nemorosa and Phytophthora hibernalis in the ornamental sector; and Phytophthora ...