Total nitrogen content of plant tissues and soils is a widely used assay in ecological research. We have need for >800 such assays each year which is twice what our current analyzer can handle. Here we request purchase of an additional nitrogen analyzer and ancillary equipment. Four research programs in our department rely heavily upon total nitrogen determinations. Two groups focus on plant responses to stress (drought, nutrient, salinity and extreme light levels) and how those responses influence the population and evolutionary responses of herbivorous insects. The third group looks at the distribution of plant communities through time and asks how soil type influences the persistence of plant communities at particular sites over thousands of years. The fourth group focuses on experimental analysis of the mechanisms of plant competition for mineral resources during the succession from abandoned fields to oak savanna.
