How climate change may threaten soil’s ability to capture carbon

Roots release exudates — organic carbon compounds — that interact with bacteria, fungi, and other soil elements to make its nutrients more accessible to the plant. “Root exudates are important regulators of soil carbon storage,” said Nikhil R. Chari, a Harvard Griffin Graduate School of Arts and Sciences student in OEB. “When we pumped just a little bit of exudate into the soil, the MAOM carbon pool did grow. “This gives us an idea of how these different exudate compounds will affect soil carbon dynamics,” said Chari. “This would allow us to better predict soil carbon dynamics in the future.”