Palacio Blasco, Sara

Biography

I am interested in understanding how plants adjust their form (morphology) and function (phenology, nitrogen and carbon cycling) to the environmental conditions where they grow (environmental stress, climate and disturbances). To address these issues, I follow a functional approach, looking at a combination of ecophysiological, phenological and morphological aspects at the whole-plant level. Most of my research has focused on the analysis of woody plants alone, but I am now trying to integrate plant interactions with other elements of the ecosystem such as the soil biota, fungi, lichens and animals.

Research Interest

Plant pheno-morphology: up to what point is bud morphology related to climate, phylogeny and allometry? Can we improve plant functional trait classifications by including plant developmental information? Plant response to disturbance: How are plant architecture, growth and carbon and nutrient cycling affected by disturbances (herbivory, erosion, fire)? Carbon cycling in woody plants: Is tree growth limited by carbon availability? What is the functional role of non-structural C pools in woody plants? Plant adaptation to gypsum soils: How do plants from gypsum soil cope with the extreme nutrient and water scarcity of gypsum soils? more information in this link