My main interest is plant biogeography. Biogeography I define as everything that has to do with the spatial distribution of biological entities. Thus, biogeography may be studied at any taxonomic (including genes), temporal or spatial scale and biogeographic patterns and processes may depend on gene flow, dispersal of diaspores (natural or anthropogenic), the distribution of environmental variables such as geology, soil properties, and climate, and historic or ongoing changes in the environment.
Since all biogeographic research depends on the accurate identification of the biological entities studied, I have become increasingly involved in purely taxonomic research. Furthermore, I consider the knowledge of biogeographic facts and processes as the key to biological conservation and I have accordingly taken an active part in many nature conservation projects and issues.
I am editor-in-chief of Nordic Journal of Botany.
Current projects:
- Taxonomy, biogeography, and evolution of the apomictic Hieracium species of Sweden
- The Flora Nordica project, in particular, Amaryllidaceae and Iridaceae
- Documentation of ongoing changes in the flora of south Sweden
- Studies in the autecology of individual bryophyte species, in particular, their dependence on the chemical composition of their substrate