Rate My Professor Peter Petrik

Peter Petrík, PhD, is a postdoctoral researcher at the Chair of Forest Botany within the Biology domain at Technische Universität Dresden, where he has been employed since 2024. He earned his doctoral degree in Forest Phytology from the Technical University of Zvolen, Slovakia, in 2021, following a Master’s degree in Forestry in 2018 and a Bachelor’s degree in Forestry in 2016 from the same institution. Prior to joining TU Dresden, Petrík served as a postdoctoral researcher at the Plant Ecophysiology Lab at Karlsruhe Institute of Technology from 2022 to 2024 and at the Global Change Research Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences from 2021 to 2022. His academic trajectory reflects a strong foundation in forestry and plant sciences, culminating in advanced research on tree physiology.

Petrík’s research centers on tree ecophysiology, particularly the responses of trees to abiotic stresses including heat, drought, and salinity. He employs methods such as gas-exchange measurements, chlorophyll fluorescence, stomatal morphology analysis, sap-flow monitoring, and dendrometer assessments to examine carbon-water balance at the leaf and individual tree levels. His investigations extend to tree provenance trials and assisted migration strategies to enhance forestry adaptation to climate change. Since 2024, he has held the position of Associate Editor for the Journal of Forestry Research and Biologia, both published by Springer. Petrík has contributed significantly to the field through numerous peer-reviewed publications, including 'Post-windthrow differences of carbon and water fluxes between managed and unmanaged Norway spruce stands' in Agricultural and Forest Meteorology (2024), 'Inter-provenance variability and phenotypic plasticity of wood and leaf traits related to hydraulic safety and efficiency in seven European beech provenances' in Annals of Forest Science (2024), 'Winter warming response of gas-exchange and growth of Abies alba and Picea abies seedlings' in Trees: Structure & Function (2023), 'Physiological and morphological constraints of water use efficiency in C3 plants' in AoB Plants (2023), and 'Interannual adjustments in stomatal and leaf morphological traits of European beech demonstrate its climate change acclimation potential' in Plant Biology (2022). His work advances understanding of physiological mechanisms underpinning forest resilience.