Flipping through field notebooks…
The RMBL turf transplant experiment, established in 2017, simulates climate change by moving large, intact blocks of plants and soil along a temperature and elevation gradient. By transplanting to the warmer and drier conditions predicted to occur with future climate change, we can observe the responses of the soil microbes and plants to novel environments. Annual monitoring has already documented rapid community responses through changes in community composition and functioning. Extending annual monitoring will further enhance our understanding of the resilience and vulnerability of mountain communities and ecosystems. Additional data will also be beneficial towards collaborations with the TransPlant Network, an international group of researchers conducting similar turf transplant experiments around the world, including the newly established Niwot Ridge turf transplant experiment.