‘From near to far, from here to there, funny things are everywhere’

Small fine roots, which aren’t much thicker than a human hair, are responsible for big processes. They take up water and nutrients for the plant, and contribute to ecosystem carbon cycling through respiration, exudation, and turnover. Advances in the way that we observe fine roots—non-destructive imaging—have given us a window into the secret lives of roots and their interactions with the soil. However, we are still faced with a challenge: How do we scale measurements of roots from ‘near to far’ and from ‘here to there’ in order to inform the global carbon cycle? The answer? Magic…and models.