CONGRATULATIONS!
Anne Marie received the NSF Fellowship
Kelly received a Brita's College Filter For Good Eco-Challenge Award, Fulbright Fellowship and Plant Sciences Fellowship
Sarah received funding for her work through WMA funding, and received a Plant Sciences Fellowship
Valerie received the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) and an Outstanding Mentor Award from UCD's Consortium for Women and Research

USDA Managed Ecosystems Funding allows for the rebuilding of the lysimeter facility at Hopland Research and Extension Center

On November 19th, the new lysimeter facility at Hopland Research & Extension Center was unveiled. This is a unique facility that consists of 72 tanks that are plumbed to collect leachates. These tanks are buried into a hillside, in order to provide natural conditions for plants growing in those tanks. Funding was provided by our lab’s USDA grant from the Managed Ecosystems Program and labor was provided by Hopland Research & Extension Center. For the next few years, this facility will be used to investigate rangeland plant and soil dynamics to develop management practices that maximize forage quantity and quality, as well as soil carbon storage, while minimizing erosion, weeds, and nutrient leaching. This facility was rebuilt so that it will last for decades, providing the opportunity for many future projects related to vegetation, management, and environmental conditions effects on water quality and quantity.

Pictured here: the team involved in lysimeter planning, logistics and construction.

The new lysimeter facility

Valerie and Chuck Vaughn- a great collaborator who’s played a key role in the seedling thinning studies that have funded the lysimeter rebuild.