Thanks to the Lisa Walker Award, I got an opportunity to travel to U.C. Davis and U.C. Berkeley to test our newly developed water stress sensor, called a micro-tensiometer, with our collaborators. In Davis, I learned to improve the in-plant installation skills. In Berkeley, I got my first chance to install the sensors into the redwoods, the world’s tallest trees! This travel has pushed forward our in-plant testing of the micro-tensiometer, and brought us closer to the study of the climate change on crops and forests.
-Siyu Zhu, Stroock Group