The distinct rhizomorphic mats formed by Piloderma fungi are significant features of the organic soil horizons of coniferous forests throughout the Pacific Northwest. These ectomycorrhizal (EcM) fungal mats have been found to cover over 40% of the forest floor in some Douglas-fir stands and are associated with a variety of physical and biochemical properties that distinguish them from the surrounding non-mat soils. As part of an NSF-funded Microbial Observatory at the H.J.

The acceleration in the release of carbon from soils is one of the most important positive feedbacks related to anthropogenically induced climate change. Analyses studying the mechanisms for soil carbon release through decomposition have focused on the effect of changes in the average temperature, with little attention to changes to its variability.

The Detritus Inputs and Removal Treatments (DIRT) were established at the H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest to examine the effects of organic matter manipulations on soil organic matter (SOM) chemistry and nutrient cycling. In 2007, after ten years of manipulations, isotope dilution methods were used to estimate gross N mineralization and nitrification rates among the six treatments that control the rate and quality of SOM inputs (control, double wood, double litter, no roots, no litter, and no inputs).

An important mission of the Andrews LTER program is to maintain strong linkages among research, education, and forest management and to provide educational opportunities in the realms of ecosystem science and natural resource management.