If you’ve ever wondered what is inside a Frankia root nodule, check it out below! Frankia is a genus of nitrogen-fixing, filamentous actinomycete bacteria that form symbiotic root nodules on actinorhizal plants (like an alder tree in this case).
Posts by Lewis Fausak
Check out thes “soil: where the magic happens” stickers I made! www.etsy.com/listing/4322...
My 11-year-old sitting with her pile of Halloween candy, sorting it into a bar graph
We have progressed from data collection to data analysis.
Soil IS where the magic happens! Share if you agree ;) There’s so much happening below the surface of the soil to help feed the world, recycle nutrients, store carbon, and purify water. #soil #soilscience
Every PI who wants to have grad students in the lab in Canada should have to read this.
First time at the European Geological Union in Vienna! I presented on the first day and had a lot of really great questions and insights about my work using X-ray photo electron spectroscopy on soils under different land uses. Looking forward to the rest of the conference!
All the soils of the world put together in one image! They are categorized into their main defining traits. Do you have a favourite one?
If you use the Hyprop system to examine your soils, check out this Jove journal that myself and a couple of colleagues worked on, I think it could be super helpful, especially if you are new to using these tools. #soil #soilscience #hyprop app.jove.com/t/66942/meas...
What a beauty
Check out these Frankia root nodules! This nitrogen fixing bacteria forms a symbiotic relationship with actinorhizal plants like alder trees in this case. The bacteria can supply most or even all of the nitrogen that the host plant needs! #soil #soilscience
On climate, did you know that only 11% of people in the US (and even smaller percentages in Canada, the UK, Australia and beyond) are dismissive?
Yet because their voices are so loud and persistent, people often think they’re 50%.
This is why I advocate so strongly for using YOUR voice!
If you don’t know already, I like to make art to promote soil science, help students learn, and create illustrations for scientific literature to explain processes and complex ideas. Here I am working on a fun personification of the world resource base soil taxonomy system. Meet the Phaeozem!
So much fun to get outside for an end of term field trip to gain some hands on experience with water sampling equipment. Thanks for a great term everyone!
For world #soil day we used soil to paint and make art, check out the gleyed and oxidized colours in this painting I made. #worldsoilday
Happy World Soil Day! This day was commemorated to share the importance of healthy #soil and to advocate for the sustainable management of soil resources. How are you celebrating #worldsoilday?
As a soil scientist, I couldn’t be happier with one of my kids “soil profile” from school! Love that parent material!!!
#soil #academicmom #soilprofile
This is a delightful Smithurides aquaticus female, an aquatic springtail species that lives on the edge of ponds and still water. Springtails have a special place in my heart, so I always include the non-soil dwelling ones under my ‘soil animal’ umbrella. #collembola #springtail #soil #cute
Right???? Like a golf ball
Just finishing up the term in our soil sampling, analysis, and data interpretation course, and showing the students different types of associations that bacteria can make with plants in the #soil. Check out these nodules on clover (Rhizobia) and alder trees (Frankia).
Check out our video with Regeneration Canada on using crop diversity to confer resiliency to variable precipitation!
youtu.be/kvTYMZJsCBI?...
Getting ready for the holiday season by sending out some soil science stickers! Thanks to everyone placing orders for the holidays!!! #soilscience www.etsy.com/shop/adventu...
Interested in sharing research in #soilhealth ? A cool way to engage people is by comparing it to #humanhealth. That’s what we did in this paper, where we discussed indicators and predictors of human and soil. www.frontiersin.org/journals/soi... #openaccess
Hi! As an introduction for new followers, my research investigates transitions to sustainable agriculture. We track soil health, crop profiles, agrobiodiversity, carbon dynamics, but also farmer networks and farmer well-being. #agroecology #agroforestry #foodsystem
link.springer.com/article/10.1...
Save the date!
Oil and chemical companies who created a high-profile alliance to end plastic pollution have produced 1,000 times more new plastic in five years than the waste they diverted from the environment
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
Check out our soil biology test! These Berlese funnels use a lamp that provides a light and heat source that scares the bugs down the funnel into an ethanol bath. From there, we can examine the amounts and types of soil fauna present in our sample! #soil