Using plant biomass removed from semi-natural habitats, such as road verges, as soil amendments on arable fields is a potential solution to enhance ecosystem services on both the arable field and in semi-natural habitats. Road verges represent a considerable area of semi-natural land in The Netherlands. Proper management of road verges enhances their biodiversity and is primarily achieved by mowing and export of the plant material in order to keep local nutrient levels low. At the same time these cuttings represent valuable biomass containing organic matter and nutrients that theoretically could enhance the soil quality in arable field, hence leading to a win-win. However, currently these plant cuttings are not used on arable fields due to the many unknowns and potential risks of such applications. This project will explore the impacts and mechanisms of applications of road verge cuttings of different chemical composition on soil-based processes and its consequences for crop production. The ultimate goal is to improve soil quality (biological, chemical and physical) through soil management using local amendments from road verge origin to close nutrient and energy loops whilst rebuilding soil.

A PhD candidate (F/M) who has a keen interest in mechanistic understanding of plant-soil interactions, with special emphasis on how organic matter amendments of varying chemical composition affect soil quality and soil services in arable land. The project includes direct collaborations with Dutch farmers, hence fluency in Dutch (speaking and writing) is an advantage.

Requirements:

• MSc degree in soil -, microbial - or plant ecology with
• strong motivation to pursue a scientific career
• good ability to think conceptually and quantitatively
• good knowledge of plant-soil (biotic, abiotic) interactions
• experience with soil quality characterisation (biological, chemical and physical)
• excellent ability to communicate in English and Dutch, both
• ability to work in multidisciplinary research teams orally and in writing
• experience with scientific writing
• good organisational skills and ability to work independently

We offer a PhD position in principle for a period of 48 months. We offer a temporary contract for 18 months which will be extended with 30 months if you perform well. Salary will increase from € 2266,- gross per month in the first year up to € 2897,- in the last year, based on a full-time appointment (38 hours per week).

Wageningen University & Research

The Plant Ecology and Nature Conservation group is part of the Department of Environmental Sciences. Our research examines the processes and underlying mechanisms that link biodiversity, ecosystem functioning and service delivery and aims to implement these insights in the design of effective biodiversity conservation strategies.

The department of Environmental Sciences of Wageningen University provides fundamental research and academic education on our living environment: nature, landscape, land usage, adaptation to climate change, water and ocean management, and the various competing claims on space. This also includes biodiversity and the sustainability of management and production. Wageningen University is part of the Wageningen University and Research concern.