Hazelnut shrubs boost soil life more than any other pine understory plant
Lasota J, Kempf M, Błońska E
Soil Health
The hazelnut or rowan you might plant near a pine tree in your yard isn't just adding variety above ground, it's actively rebuilding a richer microbial community in the soil beneath your feet.
Scientists compared soil under pine trees growing alone versus pine trees with shrubs like rowan, alder buckthorn, or hazelnut growing underneath. The shrub soils had better pH, more nutrients, and a much wider variety of fungi and bacteria, with hazelnut having the biggest effect of all. It's a reminder that what grows in the understory changes the hidden life in the soil, not just the look of the forest.
Key Findings
Soils under shrubs showed higher pH and greater nutrient availability than pine monoculture soils across 20 study plots
Fungal and bacterial taxonomic richness was significantly higher under shrubs, with European hazelnut showing the strongest effect
Soil pH plus carbon, nitrogen, calcium, and magnesium levels were the key factors shaping microbial community composition
chevron_right Technical Summary
Planting shrubs like European hazelnut under pine trees makes the soil richer and hosts far more diverse bacteria and fungi than pine growing alone, suggesting mixed forests are healthier below ground too.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
Species-specific effects of understory shrubs on soil chemistry and microbial communities in temperate Scots pine forests.
Understory shrubs are key components of forest ecosystems that influence belowground processes by modifying soil properties and shaping microbial communities through litter input and root exudation...
open_in_new Read full abstractAbstract copyright held by the original publisher.
Species Mentioned
Was this useful?
Want to tell us more? (optional)
Thanks for the note!
Something went wrong — please try again.
Too many submissions. Try again in an hour.
Ancient Amazonian forests were planted and tended by Indigenous farmers
Forests and fruits we romanticize as wild — including many plants now in our kitchens and gardens — may exist in their current abundance precisely because an...
Hazels are plants of the genus Corylus of deciduous trees and large shrubs native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The genus is usually placed in the birch family, Betulaceae, though some botanists split the hazels into a separate family Corylaceae. The fruit of the hazel is the hazelnut.