In the present study, we test the response to soil compaction of
Fraxinus angustifolia Vahl. seedlings in two soil types under greenhouse
conditions. We used F. angustifolia as a model plant, as it is a
woody species with a fast growth (Antúnez et al., 2001). We studied
four categories of variables: root morphology, root anatomy, plant
physiology and plant growth and architecture. The first objective
of this study was to find out which of these groups of variables are
affected by soil compaction and/or soil type and to what degree by
each one. The second objective was to build a causal model which
aims to explain how soil compaction affects root traits and how
these changes explain whole-plant level functioning.