The cats approach the jack-o'-lanterns with caution. Step one: administer several investigative smacks.

Such a long, warm fall we have been having, a Rudbeckia hirta starting to flower at the end of October. Crazy

New paper on AM fungi in a prairie restoration experiment planted with community members back in 2021! Beyond the cool results we found, this was such a fun day where so many of my labmates and volunteers supported my first field experiment as a grad student. Feeling so grateful! ☺️

Saw this little cutie on my way into the Kansas Biological Survey this morning. iNat suggests it's Basiothia medea, the small verdant hawk moth caterpillar.

I love visiting my AMF inoculation experiments across every season. AMF diversity supports forbs, and floral diversity across seasons keeps wildlife thriving year-round. These New England asters still blooming in October host orange sulphurs, monarch butterflies, and some busy bees!

New paper! I am excited about it, since it has some very cool contributions on: -Status of Invasive ectomycorrhizal fungi -Definition of what is a invasive mycorhizal 🍄 -Cool picture of trees being brought from Europe in 1920! Lead by @nahpo.bsky.social! nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Excited to share our paper on grassland establishment 7 yrs after native #AMF inoculation—showing AMF result in higher diversity + prairie spread into old fields—was selected Editor’s Choice by @femsjournals.bsky.social.🦠🌎 I’ll discuss next week at #SER2025 Denver ! academic.oup.com/femsle/artic...

I was honored to be an invited speaker at this year’s Grassland Restoration Network meeting! 🌾 I shared our work on using native inoculants to boost diversity in seed-based restorations—and learned so much from the community of practitioners & researchers. #RestorationEcology #Grasslands

Thrilled to see the INVAM fungal collection—and our dedicated curators—featured in the Fall issue of @sierramagazine.bsky.social Preserving the world’s largest library of mycorrhizal fungi to power ecosystem restoration, science, and sustainable ag. 🦠🌱🌍 🔗 digital.sierramagazine.org/publication/...

Call for symposia at @ICOM2026 is open until 15 October. The 13 conference of @mycorrhiza_ims #Mycorrhiza will take place in Cairns, Australia, 12-17 July 2026! @southmycorrhiza @karst_justine @fmartin1954 @1pantunes #soil #fungi icom2026.org/symposia/

We're seeking a new Senior Editor! ⏰ Are you... 👉intrigued by the interface between ecology & biological resource management? 👉a clear communicator who enjoys working as part of a team? 👉committed to maintaining high editorial standards? More info 👇 bit.ly/4lPzaIx

My new paper is out! 🧪🦠 Seven years later: native AMF inoculation improves grassland restoration successional stage, floristic quality index, and diversity, while suppressing weeds: academic.oup.com/femsle/artic... Why microbes matter in restoration 🧵

First-year prairie restoration: we’re moving AM fungi from intact remnants to a disturbed site. Foxtail may be the dominant weed now, but I know from experience it’ll be nearly gone next year—no management needed. And honestly? I think it’s very pretty. 🌾🦠🧪🌎🍄

Job alert! Please share. We're looking for an urban ecologist (PhD) to join the research team at the Holden Arboretum. Develop an active research program while supporting stakeholders. 🌳 I'll be at #ESA2025 and happy to chat. #AltAc #HoldenScience #UrbanEcology holdenfg.org/career-and-i...

We are hiring a full time lab technician to assist with several long-term richness/biodiversity/microbe/drought/restoration manupulation experiments at the KU field station. Applications due this week! Please share. Job Posting - Research Technician share.google/GsSTtiW4rIm5...

Prairie Blazing Star to the horizon on an old growth prairie on the edge of the KC metro. What a strong flowering response from a dormant season fire after 3 years of haying!

When your dedicated DM has a 3D printer and zero chill, high-end minis magically appear. Meet: 💎Rock (the rock barbarian) 🐝 A drow beekeeper/ crossbow sniper 🍄 Myc the spore druid 🕵️‍♂️ Mildew (two gnome rogues in a trench coat) 🐺 A nasty Wild Shape wolf #DnD #minis #3dprinting

Myles stands next to an absolutely giant compass plant (Silphium lacinatum). Myles is 6'3 for reference! This plot is part of a grassland restoration experiment in its 8th year and it included a native AM fungal addition. #nativeplants 🌎🧪🦠🍄🌱🌾

Saprotrophy-to-symbiosis continuum in fungi I enjoyed writing this piece with Tan Hao for the Current Biology special issue on Fungi www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Excellent job opportunity at @unihohenheim.bsky.social: build your own team in Experimental Plant Biodiversity Research (within @plantecology.bsky.social, group of Frank Schurr). Great environment (also b/c of new @greenrobust.de and #TERRA @dfg.de clusters of excellence), and great people!

New episode out now! We sit down to chat with @lizkoziol.bsky.social to discuss prairie fungi! Available wherever you get your podcasts!

A female Western Gull was recorded riding 150km in a garbage truck from San Francisco to a compost facility in Central CA, probably to forage. TWICE. An innovator, an icon, a genius. This is one of my favorite @waterbirdsociety.bsky.social papers I've ever handled as managing editor #ornithology

Spring forbs in the prairie are so dramatic, the droopy petals of the pale purple cone flower, the giant flowering spikes of the Baptisia standing 4 feet taller than all the rest of the vegetation. Ridiculous #nativeplants #restorationecology

For Australian Domestic students interested in pursuing a PhD in molecular mycorrhizal studies, please consider applying for a scholarship-funded position in my lab (tinyurl.com/jxcdhp3p) - our lab is a diverse group studying plant-microbe interactions from genes to landscapes

The Baptisia in the pocket prairie at work busted up the earth as it emerged. #nativeplants #plantpower

First morel mushroom and Jack-in-the-pulpit finds of the spring in the Kansas woodlands 🍄📸🌱

So honored to receive this award from @jappliedecology.bsky.social! Huge thanks to my amazing collaborators @martin-nunez.bsky.social @rodriguezcabal.bsky.social & Tere Morán-López

Realising the promise of arbuscular #mycorrhizal fungal #biofertilisers through more applied research 📖 nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/... 👆 A #Commentary by Salomon & Watts-Williams on this article by Koziol et al. 👇 📖 nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/... #LatestIssue

I was so happy to participate with the whole invam.bsky.social team to be interviewed for this podcast, which covers the history of mycorrhizae, the INVAM fungal collection, and recent global research on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal inoculants.

Since March 27, 2025, 1,300 species of #fungi are now listed on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species! 🍄📢 ⬇️📈 I made two slides to illustrate how the number of assessed and threatened fungal species has changed over time. Another important milestone for fungal #conservation!

Newly Submitted Manuscript: A vibrant forb-rich prairie restoration powered by native mycorrhizal fungal inoculants! Data from 7 years post-inoculation shows AM fungal amendments boost plot quality (Floristic Quality Index) and reduces weeds. #SoilHealth #nativeplants #Mycorrhizae #forbs 🍄🧪🌏🌾🌿

Meta-analysis of commercial mycorrhizal inoculant research results: Failure is the norm. Open access. nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10....

Join me Wednesday to talk soil inoculants—the good, the bad, and the dead on arrival. 🌱💀 #SoilScience

Today was a perfect day to use controlled burning to help manage our long-term microbe inoculation research plots. This minimizes woody plant establishment, and the grassland plants are adapted to this periodic treatment. Check out the team establishing the a fire break at the plot corner. 🦠🧪🌿👨‍🚒

Looking to fund your next ecological project?  Every year we invest half a million in impactful research projects around the globe to support ecologists with innovative ideas. Applications close 10 March, so apply now!👇 https://www.britishecologicalsociety.org/content/what-grants-can-i-apply-for/

Excited to get a prairie planted Monday with support from @lizkoziol.bsky.social My first mycorrhizal inoculant experimental planting.

📣GSBI Speaks is back again in March! Join us to learn about soil inoculation 🦠🍄 March 19, 2025, 9:30 MDT, 11:30 EDT, 15:30 GMT, 16:30 CET Register here: zoom.us/webinar/regi... Learn more here: www.globalsoilbiodiversity.org/webinar-23-s...

Teaching the Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi lab next week at @universityofkansas.bsky.social! I’ve prepped spores from ten different species to showcase the diversity in color, shape, and size. Fungal diversity is truly beautiful! 🍄🧪🦠🌏 Huge thanks to @invam.bsky.social for donating the materials!

KU Center for Genomics is hiring a postdoctoral fellow! Choose a mentor among the Center's faculty and propose an original project. Two years funding and generous research budget included. Please share, retweet and apply! genomics.ku.edu/ku-center-geno…

Check out our new paper using our database and pipeline to uncover novel diversity in AMF! As always, made possible by an amazing team effort ✨ dx.doi.org/10.1002/ece3...

February is the toughest part of winter for me. Can't wait for summer field work to begin and to visit my prairies! Check out this view of the Kansas flint hills from June.

Did you know there is a great database of diverse plant scientists created and maintained by @naascarabidopsis.bsky.social? 🌱 Fantastic resource for inviting speakers, reviewers, and applications! #PlantScience 🧪 #academicsky rdale1.shinyapps.io/diversifypla...

Are plants more likely to be ‘eavesdroppers’ than altruists when tapped into fungal networks? Read our new theory paper out today in @pnas.org w/ @stuwest.bsky.social @tomwscott.bsky.social www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/... (photo T. Munita)

As a 100% grant-funded scientist, my entire career depends on research grants. I am scared-not just for myself but for all of us. Science is the backbone of progress—we can't afford to pause it even for a second. www.npr.org/sections/sho...

How resilient are AMF cultures? Gi. decipiens SCT711C and Paraglomus sp. SCT771G stored for 8 years at 4C still kicking and alive. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year for you all folks!! Cheers

Gorgeous afternoon prairie hike with Bronk the farm dog. We had nearly a foot of snow! I love the way the ice clings to the grass stems and shimmers in the sun.

Do you want to study roots? We released RhizoVision Explorer 3 years ago and now have 12,500+ downloads. RVE is free, open-source software for analyzing root images. The website covers common reproducible imaging approaches. Feel free to ask any questions! Version 2 coming! www.rhizovision.com

Happy holidays y'all #mycosky 🦠

Matt Salomon and I just published a commentary on @lizkoziol.bsky.social’s recent paper in New Phyt on AMF products. These products are lacking - but whose responsibility is it to further their quality and function for agriculture - academia or industry? nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...