In the context of a recent massive increase in research on plant root functions and their
impact on the environment, root ecologists currently face many important challenges to keep …

The search for a root economics spectrum (RES) has been sparked by recent interest in trait‐
based plant ecology. By analogy with the one‐dimensional leaf economics spectrum (LES) …

Plant economics run on carbon and nutrients instead of money. Leaf strategies
aboveground span an economic spectrum from “live fast and die young” to “slow and …

A poor understanding of the fraction of global plant biomass occurring belowground as roots
limits our understanding of present and future ecosystem function and carbon pools. Here …

The leaf economics spectrum (LES) provides a useful framework for examining species
strategies as shaped by their evolutionary history. However, that spectrum, as originally …

Root, stem and leaf traits are thought to be functionally coordinated to maximize the
efficiency of acquiring and using limited resources. However, evidence is mixed for …

Plant-soil feedbacks are shaped by microbial legacies that plants leave in the soil. We tested
the persistence of these legacies after subsequent colonization by the same or other plant …

Fungi contribute extensively to a wide range of ecosystem processes, including
decomposition of organic carbon, deposition of recalcitrant carbon, and transformations of …

Although fine roots are important components of the global carbon cycle, there is limited
understanding of root structure–function relationships among species. We determined …

Ecosystem functioning relies heavily on below‐ground processes, which are largely
regulated by plant fine‐roots and their functional traits. However, our knowledge of fine‐root …