SLU researcher Tord Ranheim Sveen has gained thousands of assistants for his research project. He is taking part in ‘Dig deeper’ (Gräv djupare), a citizen science project run as part of Researchers Night (ForskarFredag), which is now in full swing. School classes across Sweden will collect soil samples from beneath trees in parks.
More than 4,600 pupils in almost 60 municipalities across Sweden have received soil sampling kits and will collect a soil sample by 8 September. The project focuses on soil health, including pollution, pH, soil structure and biodiversity.
‘So far, we have mainly studied soil health in forests and agricultural land. We know very little about the condition of soils in towns and cities or what they are like. This is a way for us to investigate that,’ says Tord Ranheim Sveen, researcher at the Department of Ecology.
To find out which microbes live in the soil, the samples will be analysed using DNA techniques. A teaspoon of soil can contain billions of organisms – a teeming world that advances in technology now allow us to explore.
‘It is fantastic to get this much help collecting samples from across the country. I would never have time to do it all myself. I did something similar as a doctoral student, when I travelled around collecting soil samples for a total of three months and covered 11,000 kilometres. I will not be doing that again,’ says Tord Ranheim Sveen.
The samples will be collected from beneath trees in parks and green spaces in towns and cities. This is important because many soil organisms depend on plants. The project will investigate whether the number of trees, the types of trees present and their size affect life in the soil.
The pupils’ contribution to the research can be combined with lessons on sustainable development, soil biology and soil-related ecosystem services. They will also have the opportunity to ask Tord questions and learn about the results of his analyses of the soil samples.
A major initiative to improve soil health is under way across Europe (Mission Soil), and the pupils’ soil samples will be included in a large European project in which soil is being collected from thousands of sites across Europe.
Dig Deeper is part of ForskarFredag, a national science festival celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. Since 2009, tens of thousands of volunteers have helped researchers generate new knowledge through ForskarFredag’s annual citizen science projects.