Dr. Christopher Walsh Professor of Horticulture Email: cswalsh@umd.edu Office: 2136 Plant Sciences Building Phone: 301.405.4351 Fax: 301.314.9308 Education and Experience: B.A. in Chemistry from Middlebury College, 1969 Foreman, Jackson Orchards, Shoreham, Vermont. 1970-1973 M.S. in Pomology from Cornell University, 1977 Research Assistant, University of Massachusetts. 1976-1977 Ph.D in Pomology from Cornell University, 1980 Faculty Member, University of Maryland, College Park. 1980-Present Visiting Academic, Massey University (New Zealand). 1987-1988

Area of Specialization:

• Dr. Walsh has worked in the production and handling of fruit crops for more than three decades. In the field, his research focuses on their production and postharvest physiology. His laboratory team uses molecular techniques to study the effects of typical production inputs on the epiphytic bacteria present on the surface of fresh fruits. The goal of this research is to identify and test metrics for use in food safety assurance programs.
• He has served as his department's Undergraduate Coordinator for the past 15 years. In that time he worked with his colleagues to develop curricula that appeal to students from traditional agricultural backgrounds and from urban and suburban areas. He also teaches courses in Horticulture and advises students majoring in Plant Science and in Horticulture and Crop Production.
• Dr. Walsh also coordinates the Joint Institute for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (JIFSAN) international training courses in Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs). In that role he has organized more than 15 Train-the-Trainers programs. He also trains and assists local fruit and vegetable growers in the mid-Atlantic Region in developing GAPs programs.
  

Current Research Projects:

Effects of Organic Production Methods on the Growth, Productivity, and Naturally Occurring Organisms in the Phyllosphere of Apple Trees

• Reducing the Risks of Salmonellosis on Maryland-Grown Fresh-Market Tomatoes
• Fruit Tree Architecture Studies: Apple Tree Growth and Development in McIntosh Wijcik Hybrids Developing Peach Trees for Reduced Labor Requirements for Thinning

Maryland Agricultural Experiment Station Technical Committee Representative: Rootstock and Interstem Effects on Pome and Stone Fruit Trees (NC-140) Postharvest Biology of Fruit (NE-1036) 1994 Redhaven Planting Peach rootstock trials at 20 North American locations 2001/2002 Redtop and Redhaven Plantings Peach rootstock trials at 12 North American locations

Courses

• PLSC 100 Introduction to Horticulture (4 credits) 2 hours lecture, 1 hour discussion and a 2-hour laboratory.
• PLSC189I Specialty Crops: Plantation Agriculture to Globalization; (3 credits) 3 hours of lecture and 1 hour discussion.
• PLSC 433 Technology of Fruit and Vegetable Production (4 credits) 3 hours of lecture and 3 hours of laboratory.
• PLSC 474 Physiology of Maturation and Storage of Horticultural Crops (3 credits) 2 hours lecture, and 2 hours of laboratory.
• International Training in Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs). During the past decade, Dr. Walsh has worked for JIFSAN to organize and present GAPs training courses in Central America, South America, and Asia. Each program enrolls about 50 foreign agricultural and health professionals in an intensive one-week training course.

Graduate Students and Laboratory Research Staff

• Postdoctoral Fellow - Adriana Telias
• Graduate Research Assistants - Julia Harshman, Donna Pahl
• Undergraduate Research Assistants - Seth DeNoble, Brian Murphy
  

Selected Recent Publications:

• Harshman, JM, CS Walsh, J Daberkow, K. Sparks, MJ Newell and GR Welsh. 2010. Hybridizing 'McIntosh Wijcik' and heat-tolerant apple cultivars to develop precocious seedling trees with improved tree architecture. Acta Horticulturae. (In press).
• Walsh, CS, AR Ottesen, JC Hanson, MJ Newell, and EH Leone. 2010. The Effect of Organic and Conventional Management Programs on Apple and Asian Pear Tree Growth, Productivity, Expenses and Revenues in a Hot, Humid Climate. Acta Horticulturae. (In press).
• Ottesen, AO, JR White, DN Skaltsas, MJ Newell and CS Walsh. 2009. Impact of organic and conventional management on the phyllosphere microbial ecology of an apple crop. Journal of Food Protection. 72(11):2321-2325.
• Lin, S-F and CS Walsh. 2008. Studies of the "Tree factor" and its role in the maturation and ripening of Gala and Fuji Apples. Postharvest Biology and Technology. 48(1):99-106.
• Rushing, JW and CS Walsh, 2006. The United States Food and Drug Administration's approach to training international suppliers in food safety and security. HortTechnology 16(4):566-569.

Awards and Honors:

• George M. Darrow Award. 1984. Presented "for excellence in viticulture and small fruits research" by the American Society for Horticultural Science.
• Extension Division Award of Excellence. 1990. American Society for Horticultural Science.
• Award of Merit. 1991. Maryland Grape Growers Association.
• Excellence in Extension Programs. 1992. Agricultural Alumni Association of the University of Maryland.
• Excellence in Instruction. 2002. Agricultural Alumni Association of the University of Maryland.
• U.S. Food and Drug Administration Team Award. 2004. For participation as an instructor in an international food safety training course directed to foreign suppliers of fresh produce to the United States.