We welcome new and joint ideas for master thesis and bachelor thesis projects within the concept of Soil Plant Systems. A list of the current projects of the department can be found here.

We recommend that you have a background in the courses taught by the department (e.g., “Soil Protection and Management” or “Environmental Soil Science and Plant Nutrition”) or in other soil science-related courses. Our projects include laboratory and field work, field manipulation experiments, greenhouse experiments, and theoretical studies. We prioritize theses that perform experimental work in the field and the greenhouse. Please get in touch with Prof. Louise Rütting to discuss your ideas.

There are strict safety instructions and controls. Supervision in English and German is provided.

General topics of interest (incomplete list):

• Re-cultivation of post-mining land
• Drought effect on tropical soils and forest ecosystems
• Winter anomalies affecting Arctic tundra and peatland
• rewetting drained land
• Invasive plant species
• Forest wildfire regrowth and recovering soil
• soil organic carbon stabilization on marginal land
• application of soil additives

Keywords for projects: soil nutrient cycling, Plant nutrient uptake, Climate change effects on ecosystems, Soil organic matter decomposition, plant litter decomposition, microbiological processes in nutrient cycling, greenhouse gas emissions, phosphorus limitation, stable isotope tracing, and fertilizer testing.