Dr. Szilvia Fóti - MATE Research
Overview
Dr. Szilvia Fóti is an ecophysiologist specializing in the spatiotemporal dynamics of ecosystem functioning in grassland and cropland systems. Her research focuses on greenhouse gas fluxes (CO2, N2O) and the quantification of ecosystem functional stability. In addition to extensive field measurements, she conducts controlled laboratory experiments applying predefined stressors, such as drought, heat and nutrient deficiency, to assess their ecophysiological impacts. More recently, here work has expanded to horticultural systems, investigating how specific LED light recipes can enhance plant biomass production and yield quality. Her current research integrates field- and lab-based approaches to understand landscape-level functional stability of the vegetation.
Research keywords:
Publications
Ecosystem functional stability: Croplands and grasslands are major sources and sinks of greenhouse gases exchanged between vegetation, soils, and the atmosphere. We investigated the spatiotemporal stability of soil respiration and identified spatially heterogeneous patches of high stability that were largely determined by local topographic characteristics. Over the same multi year study period, grassland plant species abundances and co-occurrence patterns showed pronounced temporal fluctuations, which were also spatially related to the micro-topography.
Fóti, S., Balogh, J., Gecse, B., Pintér, K., Papp, M., Koncz, P., Kardos, L., Mónok, D., & Nagy, Z. (2020). Two potential equilibrium states in long-term soil respiration activity of dry grasslands are maintained by local topographic features. Scientific Reports, 10(1), 1–13. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-71292-4
Fóti, S., Bartha, S., Balogh, J., Pintér, K., Koncz, P., Biró, M., Süle, G., Petrás, D., De Luca, G., Mészáros, Á., Zimmermann, Z., Szabó, G., Csathó, A. I., Ladányi, M., Péli, E. R., & Nagy, Z. (2023). Fluctuations and trends in spatio‐temporal patterns of plant species and diversity in a sandy pasture. Journal of Vegetation Science, 34(3). https://doi.org/10.1111/jvs.13190
Spatial and temporal patterns of greenhouse gas fluxes: The substantial spatiotemporal variability of greenhouse gas fluxes remains insufficiently understood, creating knowledge gaps that hinder the modeling of key ecophysiologial processes and limit the reliability of projections under future climate scenarios. A “spatial scaling challenge” provided insights into the data-mining approaches of scientists in the field, while long-term measurements of soil respiration and its components enabled us to evaluate the relative importance of their key drivers.
Pacheco-Labrador, J., Cendrero-Mateo, M. P., Van Wittenberghe, S., Hernandez-Sequeira, I., Koren, G., Prikaziuk, E., Fóti, S., Tomelleri, E., Maseyk, K., Čereković, N., Gonzalez-Cascon, R., Malenovský, Z., Albert-Saiz, M., Antala, M., Balogh, J., Buddenbaum, H., Dehghan-Shoar, M. H., Fennell, J. T., Féret, J. B., … Kopkáně, D. (2025). Ecophysiological variables retrieval and early stress detection: insights from a synthetic spatial scaling exercise. International Journal of Remote Sensing, 46(1), 443–468. https://doi.org/10.1080/01431161.2024.2414435
De Luca, G., Papp, M., Fóti, S., Posta, K., Mészáros, Á., Pintér, K., Nagy, Z., Péli, E. R., Fekete, S., & Balogh, J. (2024). Mycorrhizal fungi respiration dynamics in relation to gross primary production in a Hungarian dry grassland. Plant and Soil. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-024-06557-2
Balogh, J., De Luca, G., Pintér, K., Nagy, Z., Koncz, P., Süle, G., Gelybó, G., Kardos, L., Cserhalmi, D., Kampfl, G., Fekete, S., & Fóti, S. (2025). Belowground carbon allocation exerts a stronger influence on soil respiration than soil organic carbon content in a dry temperate grassland. Plant and Soil, 516(2), 1787–1801. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-025-07831-7
LED light recipes in indoor horticulture: Indoor cultivation of leafy greens supports year-round production of nutritious and healthy vegetables. LED lighting systems offer unique opportunity to precisely regulate the energy input for photosynthesis and the spectral cues that influence plant development, all with relatively low operational costs. Red and far-red light enrichment in the light recipe may enhance both the quantity and the quality of lettuce, however the magnitude may be cultivar-dependent.
Fóti, S., Harsányi, Á., Venczel, L., Balázs, L., Ombódi, A., Péli, E., & Balogh, J. (2026). Effects of Far-red and Red-enriched Lights on the Quality Attributes of Indoor Lettuce. Journal of Plant Growth Regulation. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00344-026-12062-w
Projects
Project no. 1.: TÉT – Partitioning of rhizospheric, heterotrophic, and mycorrhizal soil CO2 flux components in forest ecosystems (2023-2024)
Soils function either as carbon sink or source and can thus significantly affect the concentration of atmospheric CO2. The main objective of the project is to contribute to refining the parametrization and testing the soil C component of biogeochemical models by partitioning the soil CO2 efflux in a forest ecosystem.
Project no. 2.: ESA - Spatiotemporal patterns in vegetation functioning (2019-2021)
The project aimed to study the spatiotemporal patterns of different ecosystem functions and integrate field and Earth observations for a more advanced understanding. Ecosystem responses under fluctuating environmental conditions and during stress show high temporal and spatial variability. Assessment of the responses rests on different technical approaches depending on the ecosystem function in question and its relevant spatial scale and also depends on recent advances in remote and proximal sensing. In this respect, the measurement of sun-induced chlorophyll fluorescence is a relatively new way of capturing the photosynthetic capacity, as well as the healthy or stressed state of the canopy.
Project no. 3.: Bolyai János Research Fellowship - Spatial aspects of greenhouse gas exchange of agricultural fields (2014-2017)
The project aimed to use spatially intensive chamber-based greenhouse gas flux measurements for a best unbiased estimate of soil CO2 efflux of a given area. Such estimates are considered key to improve model estimates based on other techniques (e.g., eddy covariance), and to plan mitigation possibilities in areas under agricultural land use.
