Betsy Von Holle

Harvard Forest

Primary Interests:

Invasive species effects

HWA Objectives:

A current and expanding area of my research is investigating synergisms between non-native plants and introduced tree pathogens and pests. Hemlock forests in the Eastern United States are extremely resistant to biological invasion because of their deep shade and acidic soil, both of which are radically transformed with the introduction of the non-native invertebrate, hemlock woolly adelgid (Adelges tsuga). I have studied the response of understory plants to HWA-infested hemlock stands in the Southern Appalachians across an invasion front. I would like to investigate the facilitation of non-native ruderals invading hemlock forests devastated by this introduced invertebrate and the interaction of these communities with massive logging efforts currently being undertaken to salvage hemlock lumber prior to adelgid invasion. This research will be a collaborative effort across a latitudinal gradient from Georgia to Massachusetts.