The evolutionary origins and subsequent histories of soils and trees

ABSTRACT

The evolutionary relationships between forests, grasslands and humans have exerted profound terraforming influences, not just on and through readily visible landscapes but also (and perhaps especially) below ground. This paper examines how these interactions have played out at various points in the history of the land flora and the arrival of hominins, and their implications for soil sustainability.

KEYWORDS:

• forest
• roots
• weathering
• carbon cycle
• competition

Acknowledgments

The author is grateful to Neville Fay for the opportunity to present a talk at the 52nd Annual Amenity Arboriculture Conference, on which the present paper is based.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Howard Thomas

Howard Thomas was born and educated in Wales and, after a research career including visiting professorships at Universities in Japan, the United States and Switzerland, he is now emeritus Professor of Biology at Aberystwyth University. He has published extensively on plant development and has a special interest in the science-humanities connection. He is a Fellow of the Learned Society of Wales, a Trustee of the New Phytologist and co-author of The Molecular Life of Plants (2013, Wiley) and Food and the Literary Imagination (2014, Palgrave). His most recent books are Senescence (2016), The War Between Trees and Grasses (2017) and The Tale of the Three Little Pigments (2018).