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Research
Interests
I am broadly interested in the causes and
consequences of species diversity in plant communities, particularly
grasslands. My current research focues on how variation in
soil resources influences species diversity and composition, particularly in grasslands. We
currently have ongoing two large field experiments in native grassland
in SW Michigan where we are manipulating the spatial pattern and scale
of soil resource heterogeneity to see how this
influences local plant diversity. We are interested in the dynamics
of the community response to these manipulations of resource
heterogeneity and how species traits, particularly comparing
clonal and non-clonal species, affect the response.
I am also interested in the determinants and
consequences of diversity in agricultural ecosystems. As a co-PI on the
KBS LTER project I have been monitoring the long-term effects of
different crop management systems on the diversity and composition of
weed communities in row crops. We have recently established a new experiment (the Biodiversity Plots) in which crop type and rotation.This will allow us to determine the effects of
crop diversity on community and ecosystem processes, including weed seed
banks, the emergent weed community, crop production, soil microbial and
insect communities. We are continuing to monitor the effects of annual disturbance and fertilizaton on community composition and successional
trajectory in replicate old fields that are part of the LTER
experimental system. These experiments allow us to test
the long-term effects of fertilization and tillage on plant and
microbial communities and soil processes.
The LTER work combined with my research on
native grasslands has given me a greater appreciation of the challenges
inherent in restoring native species in degraded grassland. My students
and I have begun to work with local resource managers to develop
experimental approaches that can guide the restoration and management of
native grasslands in this area.
I encourage students in my lab to develop independent
projects; their interests and ideas provide the impetus for me to
explore new areas of research.
I currently have three Ph.D. and one MS student in
my lab, |
Gross, K.L., M.R. Willig, L. Gough, R. Inouye, and S. B. Cox. 2000. Species density and productivity at different spatial scales in herbaceous plant communities. Oikos 89: 417-427.
Mittelbach,
G. G., C. S. Steiner, K. L. Gross, H. Reynolds, S. M. Scheiner, R. B.
Waide, M. R. Willig, and S. I. Dodson. 2001. What is the observed
relationship between species richness and productivity? Ecology
(in press).
Suding, KN, KL Gross and G Houseman. 2004. Alternative states and positive feedbacks in restoration ecology. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 19:46-53.
Gross, K.L., G.G. Mittelbach, and H. Reynolds. 2005. Invasiblity and grassland biodiversity: effects of nutrient addition and cover reduction. Ecology 86: 476-486.
Suding, KN, SL Collins, L Gough, CM Clark, EE Cleland, KL Gross, D Milchunas, and S Penning. 2005. Functional traits predict species loss in response to resource enhancement. PNAS 102: 4387-4392.
Farber, S, R Constanza, DL Childers, J Erickson, KL Gross, M Grove, C Hopkinson, J Kahn, S Pincetl, A Troy, P Warren, and M Wilson. 2006 linking Ecology and Ecosystem Management BioScience 56: 121-134.
Smith, RG and KL Gross. 2006. Weed community and corn yield variability in diverse management systems. Weed Science 54: 106-113.
Suding, KN and KL Gross. 2006. Modifying native and exotic species correlations: The influence of fire and seed additions Ecological Applications (in press)
Emery, SM and KL Gross. 2006. The identity of dominant species, not evenness, drives invasion in experimental plant communities Ecology (in press)
All Publications
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