The Quirk Laboratory at LSU

The Quirk lab focuses on how plants interact with their environment in wetland ecosystems. We examine both pattern and process at the micro- to landscape scale. We examine how plant and microbial processes contribute to nutrient and carbon cycling in natural, restored and created wetland ecosystems. We are also interested in how humans have altered the structure and function of wetlands. We use a combination of field, greenhouse, and laboratory studies to examine factors influencing plants and soils and linkages to hydrologically-connected ecosystems.