Taryn Bauerle
Professor, Director of Graduate Studies, School of Integrative Plant Science, Horticulture Section
My overall research interests lie in woody root physiological ecology. Primarily, my lab works on examining root morphological and physiological response to abiotic and biotic stressors. The majority of my research deals with growth and physiological responses of plants to water deficits under both greenhouse and field conditions. I am interested in the integration of whole plant water status in relation to soil and root demographics with root physiological characteristics at the individual root level. In particular, I focus on root response to localized water, hydraulic redistribution, and herbivory and how these parameters affect whole plant physiology. I aim to use basic research to address industry pertinent issues, such as stress caused by a limited water supply and fine root responses to herbivore pressures.
Interests
Woody plant root biology and physiological ecology
Water stress
Root herbivory
Recent Research
The majority of my research has focused on growth and physiological responses of plants to water deficits under both greenhouse and field conditions. In so doing, I concentrate on the integration of physiological responses from the organ to the whole plant level. In particular, I focus on root responses to localized water, hydraulic redistribution, and herbivory all important issues surrounding woody ornamental horticultural crops. My lab investigates inherent root-system growth patterns in heterogeneous environments as often found in both containerized and field grown plant material. One major question my research aims to address is "how does water stress influence root allocation and survivorship along a gradient in whole plant water stress severity? " Particularly, how does localized water stress affect individual roots? A complementary component of my research deals with the effects of insect feeding on root population dynamics and function. Plant herbivory can cause severe loss of plant biomass as well as impair physiological function and cause shifts in carbon allocation. Differences in root system growth rate may affect the mechanism by which plants deal with herbivory including, diminished frequency of root infection due to high root growth rates or temporal avoidance. Thus, understanding how plants respond to herbivore pressure strengthens our ability to manage plant-herbivore interactions.
Recent Publications
- Muñoz Ucros J, Wilhelm R, Buckley DH, and Bauerle TL. 2021. Drought legacy in rhizosphere bacterial communities alters subsequent plant performance. Plant and Soil. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-021-05227-x
- Zwetsloot M and Bauerle TL. 2021. Repetitive seasonal drought causes substantial species‐specific shifts in fine‐root longevity and spatio‐temporal production patterns in mature temperate forest trees. New Phytologist (doi.org/10.1111/nph.17432).
- Muñoz Ucros J, Zwetsloot M, Cuellar-Gempeler C and Bauerle TL. 2021. Spatio-temporal patterns of rhizosphere microbiome assembly: from ecological theory to agricultural application. Journal of Applied Ecology (in press).
- Grams T, Hesse B, Gebhardt T, Weikl F, Roetzer T, Kovacs B, Hikino K, Hafner B, Brunn M, Bauerle T, Häberle K-H, Pretzsch H, Pritsch K. 2021. The Kroof experiment: realization and efficacy of a recurrent drought experiment plus recovery in a beech/spruce forest. Ecosphere DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.3399
- Nikolova PS, Bauerle TL, Häberle K-H, Blaschke H, Brunner I, and Matyssek R. 2020. Fine-Root Traits Reveal Contrasting Ecological Strategies in European Beech and Norway Spruce during Extreme Drought. Frontiers in Plant Science 11: 1211. https://doi.org/10.3389/FPLS.2020.01211.
- Pretzsch H, Grams T, Häberle K-H, Pritsch K, Bauerle T and Rötzer T. 2020. Growth and mortality of Norway spruce and European beach in mono-specific and mixed-species stands under natural episodic and experimentally extended drought. Results of the KROOF throughfall exclusion experiment. Trees 34 (1): 1-14.
- Zwetsloot M, Muñoz Ucros J, Wickings K, Wilhelm R, Sparks J, Buckley D and Bauerle TL. 2020 Prevalent root-derived phenolics drive shifts in microbial community composition and prime decomposition in forest soil. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 145: 107797.
- Hafner BD, Hesse BD, Bauerle TL, Grams TEE. 2019. Water potential gradient, root conduit size and root xylem hydraulic conductivity determine the extent of hydraulic redistribution in temperate trees. Functional Ecology. doi: 10.1111/1365-2435.13508.
- Huber AE, Melcher P, Piñeros M, Setter T and Bauerle TL. 2019. Signal coordination prior to, during, and after stomatal closure in response to drought stress. New Phytologist. doi: 10.1111/nph.16082.
- Bauerle TL. 2019. Applied tree biology [Review of the book Applied tree biology] A.D. Hirons and P.A. Thomas. Wiley Blackwell. The Quarterly Review of Biology 94(3): 299.
- Zwetsloot MJ, Goebel M, Paya AM, Grams TEE and Bauerle TL 2019. Specific spatio-temporal dynamics of absorptive fine roots in response to neighbor species identity in a mixed beech-spruce forest. Tree Physiology. doi.org/10.1093/treephys/tpz086.
- Asbjornsen H, Campbell JL, Jennings KA, Vadeboncoeur MA, McIntire C, Templer PH, Phillips RP, Bauerle TL, Dietze MC, Frey SD, Groffman PM, Guerrieri R, Hanson PJ, Kelsey EP, Knapp AK, McDowell NG, Meir P, Novick KA, Ollinger SV, Pockman WT, Schaberg PG, Wullschleger SD, Smith MD, and Rustad LE. 2018. Guidelines and considerations for designing field experiments simulating precipitation extremes in forest ecosystems. Methods in Ecology and Evolution. 9: 2310-2325.
- Zwetsloot MJ, Kessler A, and Bauerle TL. 2018. Phenolic root exudate and tissue compounds vary widely among temperate forest tree species and have contrasting effects on soil microbial respiration. New Phytologist 218: 530-541.
- Yin, J., Bassuk, N. L., Oldburg, M. W., & Bauerle, T. L. (2014). Fine Root Hydraulic Conductance is Related to Post-transplant Recovery of Two Quercus Tree Species. Journal of the American Society for Horticultural Science. 139:649-656.
- Cook-Patton, S. C., & Bauerle, T. L. (2012). Potential benefits of plant diversity on vegetated roofs: a literature review. Journal of Environmental Management. 106:85-92.
- Bauerle, T. L., Centinari, M., & Bauerle, W. L. (2011). Shifts in xylem aperture and safety in grafted apple trees of differing growth potential in response to drought. Planta. 234:1045-1054.
- Alsina, M. M., Smart, D. R., Bauerle, T. L., de Herralde, F., Biel, C., Stockert, C., Negron, C., & Save, R. (2011). Seasonal changes of whole root system conductance by two different grape root systems with different seasonal root growth patterns. JXB: Journal of Experimental Botany. 62:99-109.
- Rassmann, S., Bauerle, T. L., Proveda, K., & Vanette , R. (2011). Predicting root defence against herbivores during succession. Functional Ecology. 25:368-379.
- Comas, L. H., Bauerle, T. L., & Eissenstat, D. M. (2010). Biological and environmental factors controlling root dynamics and function: effects of root ageing and soil moisture. Australian Journal of Grape and Wine Research. 16:131-137.
- Bauerle, T. L., Richards, J. H., Smart, D. R., & Eissenstat, D. M. (2008). Importance of internal hydraulic redistribution for prolonging lifespan of roots in dry soil. Plant, Cell & Environment. 31:177-186.
- Bauerle, T. L., Smart, D. R., Bauerle, W. L., & Eissenstat, D. M. (2008). Root foraging in response to heterogeneous soil moisture in two grapevines that differ in potential growth rate. New Phytologist. 179:857-866.
- Bauerle, T. L., Eissenstat, D. M., Granett, J., Gardner, D. R., & Smart, D. R. (2007). Consequences of Insect Herbivory on Root Survivorship and Root Age Structure in Grape. Plant, Cell & Environment. 30:86-795.
- Bauerle, T. L. (2006). Grapevine Root Dynamics. American Wine Society Journal. 38:24-28.
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Courses Taught
- PLSCI 1115: The Nature of Plants
- PLSCI 3050: Arboriculture: Applied Tree Care
- PLSCI 4900: Reflection on Plant Sciences Experiential Learning
Contact Information
136 Plant Science Building
Ithaca, NY 14853
tlb33 [at] cornell.edu
More information
Graduate Fields
- Horticulture
Education
- Doctorate, The Pennsylvania State University, 2007
- Master of Science, University of Washington, 2001
- Bachelor of Science, Humboldt State University, 1998
Taryn in the news
News
- Cornell Atkinson
- Department of Global Development
- Statistics and Data Science
News
- Cornell Institute for Digital Agriculture
- School of Integrative Plant Science
- Horticulture Section