RhizoSeqC launch

All project partners as well as FairCarboN management, ANR and CNRS were present. The day was packed with discussions on project leadership and management, and in particular on WorkPackages and their organization and interaction.

This project, which brings together 10 research units, aims to help agricultural soils capture and sequester more carbon. Two complementary strategies are being explored:

    Increase the organic matter brought to the soil via roots (rhizodeposits)
 Maintain this organic matter in the soil by stabilizing it through interactions with minerals.

To achieve this objective, the project is studying sorghum, a water-hardy plant grown in Africa and Europe and adapted to changing climates. RhizoSeqC seeks to identify sorghum lines that promote soil carbon enrichment via their roots. We call this rhizodeposition! Phenotyping of sorghum has already begun in partnership with IRD at the CERAAS and ISRA experimental sites in Senegal.

From rhizodeposition to stabilization by minerals, transformation by microorganisms and quantification, the RhizoSeqC project promises to be rich and multidisciplinary !