Posted July 23, 2010

The Project:
Successful establishment of tree seedlings on reclaimed mine lands is mainly limited by low nutrient availability and competition from weeds. Weed competition can adversely affect establishment of tree seedlings by augmenting the impacts of moisture and nutrient stress. However, it is not well known how grass species such as barley, which are planted for stabilizing newly reclaimed oil sands sites, interact with fertilizer to influence early survival and growth of tree seedlings. One M.Sc. student is being sought to study growth and nutritional response of tree seedlings to fertilization and examine how this response is modified by grass competition in order to indentify the optimum application rate. This student will complete the first phase of this project, which involves a greenhouse experiment to test effects of soil moisture, weed competition, and fertilizer on growth and nutrition of aspen and white spruce seedlings.

Qualifications:
Applicants must be highly motivated to pursue a research career, be self-reliant and have excellent oral and written communication skills. Candidates must have a B.S.A. or B.Sc. in soil science, agriculture, forestry, environmental sciences or in a related field, and he/she must meet all of the requirements for acceptance into the M.Sc. program in the Department of Soil Science at the University of Saskatchewan.

Starting Date: September 1, 2010.

How to Apply:
Submit your application on-line at the College of Graduate Studies and Research website: http://www.usask.ca/cgsr/prospective_students/apply.php. Send your supporting documents to Graduate Secretary Department of Soil Science, 51 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, SK, S7S 5A8, Canada. General inquiries regarding the graduate program in Soil Science should be directed to the Graduate Secretary: soilsc_gradstudies@usask.ca.