The Hans Merensky Chair in Advanced Modelling of Eucalypt Wood Formation
Understanding xylogenesis in the world's most widely planted hardwood species
Renewed use of newly upgraded microscope in capturing high quality images
Post authored by Lucy Nevhungwili The concept of performing good image analyses lies in capturing high quality images. To enable one to use image analysis software, such as ImageJ and QuPath, to identify and quantify different cell types, crisp and clear images are needed. Last…
Increasing access to tracheary elements for the study of wood developmental dynamics
Post authored by Ph.D. candidate Rafael Keret * This blog post is based off a recent publication by members of EucXylo and IPB. The reference and link to the publication can be found here: Keret, R., Hills, P. & Drew, D. The evolution of in…
Effects of a lucerne cover crop on the performance of eucalypts
Post authored by Jenna Roseveare Agroforestry systems provide the opportunity to diversify products, mitigate risks and contribute to biodiversity conservation. These are some of the main motivations for Jenna’s project. Eucalypts are generally fast growing, high nutrient demanding trees. This study will investigate the effects…
A new paper in Southern Forests
Post authored by Dr Letitia Schoeman Recently Brian Mandigora, a PhD candidate, published his first paper titled “Enhancing predictive precision of dominant height projection equations for eucalypts by incorporating rainfall and temperature terms” in the Southern Forests journal. Well done Brian! Short-rotation forest stands are sensitive…
Investigation of an alternative method of measuring the vibrations of plants, using a Laser Doppler Vibrometer
Post authored by Dr Letitia Schoeman Ms Frances Steyl, from the Department of Mechanical and Mechatronic Engineering at Stellenbosch University, recently completed her Mechatronic Project 478 where she investigated an alternative method of plant vibration measurements. During drought conditions water loss through a plant’s stomata…
Letitia presents at conference in Germany
Post authored by Dr Letitia Schoeman Letitia Schoeman presented her X-ray CT research at the Fifth Xylem International Meeting (XIM5), held in Würzburg, Germany from the 19th to 21st of September 2022 (https://xim5.de/). She presented a poster (Figure 1) on her research entitled “Advanced imaging and…
Celebrating the legacy of Dr. Hans Merensky
Post authored by Dr Michelle Eckert EucXylo had the privilege of joining our sibling groups (also funded by the Hans Merensky Foundation) to celebrate the legacy that Dr. Merensky left behind over the course of a 3-day trip. On arrival, we took an amazing tour of…
EucXylo hosts its annual HMF research day!
Post authored by Dr Letitia Schoeman This year, the Hans Merensky Research Chair in Advanced Modelling of Eucalypt Wood Formation, also known as EucXylo, hosted its annual Hans Merensky Foundation (HMF) Research Day on the 3rd of October 2022. The meeting was held as a semi-hybrid…
Dr Saunders attended Berlin conference in July
Alta Saunders attended the Sixth international conference on Plant Vascular Biology (held from July 17th to 21st) in Berlin, Germany (https://www.pvb2022.org/abstract-book/). She presented a poster on her research entitled “Modelling drought responses of Eucalyptus using photosynthetic gain and hydraulic risk”. The poster can be…
EucXylo Writing Retreat
Post authored by Yenziwe Mbuyisa I recently read an article by the Enago Academy that spoke of the prevalent loneliness experienced by academics. The long hours that academics spend alone reading, writing, and analyzing a niche interest can easily lead to many academics feeling…