Project: Tuning the wheat root microbiome to improve soil health and optimize rhizosphere nitrogen cycling and availability
| Acronym | WISH-ROOTS (Reference Number: 114) |
| Duration | 01/04/2022 - 31/03/2025 |
| Project Topic | Supporting and improving the fertility and health of agricultural soils is essential to the survival of humanity. The cultivation of wheat and associated agricultural practices such as application of nitrogen (N-fertilizers impacts on nearly 220 million ha of agricultural soil globally. Therefore, the possibility of tuning the impact of wheat production on soil health will advance our efforts to develop more sustainable agricultural approaches, preserving and enhancing soil health. To summarise, the main objective of the WISH-ROOTS project is to restore and and preserve soil health through wheat root traits. For this, we aim to: 1 identify key traits associated with functionality of microbial guilds in the rhizosphere and root system architectural traits; 2 find the genes, genomic regions or metabolic pathways in wheat that benefit soil health; 3 develop genetic tools for breeding to introduce these beneficial traits in commercial cultivars and 4 develop a predictive model for soil health. These aims will provide advantageous varieties for farmers that support a more sustainable use of land improving soil microbial biodiversity, nutrient cycling, and structure. |
| Network | EJP SOIL |
| Call | 1st EJP SOIL external call for proposals |
Project partner
| Number | Name | Role | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | John Innes Centre | Coordinator | United Kingdom |
| 2 | Biome Makers Inc. | Partner | Germany |
| 3 | Agricultural Research Council | Partner | Spain |
| 4 | Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sicences | Partner | South Africa |
| 5 | University of Bologna | Partner | Belgium |
| 6 | KULeuven | Partner | Italy |
| 7 | Forschungszentrum Jülich . IBG-2 – Plant Sciences | Partner | China |