Plant Production and Protection

Plant production and protection encompasses management of fruit, vegetable, forage and field crops; silviculture; plant breeding; plant nutrient management; green industry management; ornamental horticulture; plant pathology; mycology; host microbe interactions; and epidemiology.

Faculty

 

Selected Research Projects:

  • Epidemiology and Improved Management of Spinach Foliar Diseases.
    Research Faculty: Kathryne Everts.
  • Evaluating Biocontrol Alternatives to Methyl Bromide for Management of Root-Knot Nematode
    Research Faculty: Kathryne Everts. Robert Kratochvil.
    http://www.agnr.umd.edu/maes_exe/dividends/sardanelli3.pdf
  • Sustainable Management Alternatives for Root Knot Nematodes.
    Research Faculty:Kathryne Everts. Robert Kratochvil.
    http://www.agnr.umd.edu/maes_exe/dividends/sardanelli2.pdf
  • Competition, Biology and Control of Perennial Weeds.
    Research Faculty: Scott Glenn.
  • Determination of Risk of the Scab Disease of Winter Wheat with No-till Planting and Potential for its Control.
    Research Faculty: Arvydas Grybauskas.
  • Determining a Yield Reduction Function for the Gray Leaf Spot Disease of Maize.
    Research Faculty: Arvydas Grybauskas.
  • Epidemiology and Field Crop Disease Management.
    Research Faculty: Arvydas Grybauskas.
  • Row-Spacing and Plant Population Effects for Maryland Corn Production Systems
    Research Faculty: Arvydas Grybauskas. Robert Kratochvil.
  • Developing A More Healthful Soybean Oil
    Research Faculty: William Kenworthy.
  • Developing A Soybean With Reduced Phytic Acid To Help Improve Poultry Nutrition
    Research Faculty: William Kenworthy.
  • Shore Agricultural Sustainability Program: Increasing the Profitability of Wheat, Corn, and Soybeans
    Research Faculty: William Kenworthy. Robert Kratochvil.
    http://www.agnr.umd.edu/maes_exe/dividends/lo2.pdf
  • Soybean Germplasm Improvement.
    Research Faculty: William Kenworthy.
  • Cropping systems for the phytoremediation of phosphorus enriched soils
    Research Faculty:Robert Kratochvil.
    Homepage: http://www.psla.umd.edu/extension/crops/home.cfm
  • Edible soybean variety test
    Research Faculty: Robert Kratochvil.
    Homepage: http://www.psla.umd.edu/extension/crops/home.cfm
  • Effects of planting date and seed treatment upon the performance of soybean
    Research Faculty:Robert Kratochvil.
    Homepage: http://www.psla.umd.edu/extension/crops/home.cfm
  • Effects of seeding rates upon the performance of 'Roundup-Ready' soybean
    Research Faculty: Robert Kratochvil.
    Homepage: http://www.psla.umd.edu/extension/crops/home.cfm
  • Effects of various tillage procedures on corn production
    Research Faculty: Robert Kratochvil.
    Homepage: http://www.psla.umd.edu/extension/crops/home.cfm
  • Management of corn stalk residue for planting no-till winter wheat
    Research Faculty: Robert Kratochvil.
    Homepage: http://www.psla.umd.edu/extension/crops/home.cfm
  • Management practices for hard red winter wheat quality
    Research Faculty: Robert Kratochvil.
    http://www.psla.umd.edu/extension/crops/home.cfm
  • Performance of corn in narrow row widths and/or high plant populations
    Research Faculty: Robert Kratochvil.
    http://www.psla.umd.edu/extension/crops/home.cfm
  • Performance of hard red winter wheat varieties in the mid-Atlantic region
    Research Faculty: Robert Kratochvil.
    http://www.psla.umd.edu/extension/crops/home.cfm
  • Performance of malting barley in the mid-Atlantic region
    Research Faculty: Robert Kratochvil.
  • Row Width and Seeding Rate Effects for Soybeans Planted in Full-Season and Double-Crop Systems
    Research Faculty: Robert Kratochvil.
  • Developing Economic Nutrient Reduction Strategies for the Nursery and Greenhouse Agricultural Industries.
    Research Faculty: John Lea-Cox.
  • Influence of Nutrient and Water Management Practices on the Population Dynamics of Black Vine Weevil.
    Research Faculty: John Lea-Cox.
    Homepage: http://www.agnr.umd.edu/maes_exe/dividends/shrewsbury2.pdf
  • Sustainability of Strawberry Production Systems in the Absence of Methyl Bromide
    Research Faculty: John Lea-Cox.

    Methyl bromide fumigation is used extensively in strawberry production to control weeds and soil-borne pathogens and pests. Much of the research efforts to find methyl bromide replacements and alternatives have focused on the production systems and practices of the California and Florida industries. However, strawberry growers in the mid-western and northeastern United States employ very different production practices that will also be impacted by the loss of methyl bromide. Cold climate strawberry production systems need to be evaluated for efficacy and sustainability in the absence of methyl bromide. Sustainability has been defined as consisting of the four elements of (1) efficiency, (2) economics, (3) environmental impact, and (4) public acceptance. The objectives of this project will be to quantify all the elements of sustainability as they pertain to three cold-climate strawberry production systems. Replicated plots of Plasticulture, traditional Matted Row, and Advanced Matted Row production systems will be established on a research site equipped for determining the environmental impacts of horticultural practices. Plots will be established in 2002, cropped during the 2003 and 2004 seasons, and samples and data collected to evaluate and compare management inputs (labor, equipment, water, fertilizer, pesticides), efficiency (yield, fruit quality and marketability) and public acceptance (pick-your-own consumer preference and opinion). Samples of surface run-off, soil, soil water, and plant material will be collected and analyzed for nutrient content and pesticide residues, to quantify soil erosion, water use, and nutrient and pesticide fate in each of these production systems. The goal of this project will be to develop a comprehensive data set for use in evaluating sustainability of cold-climate strawberry production practices in the absence of methyl bromide. From this evaluation, best management practices and grower recommendations can be formulated
  • Tospovirus - A Web-based Diagnostic Database for the Nursery and Greenhouse Industries.
    Research Faculty: John Lea-Cox.
    Homepage: http://www.agnr.umd.edu/tospo/
  • Integrated Turfgrass Management For Environmental Enhancement and Resource Conservation.
    Research Faculty: Peter Dernoeden.
  • Isolation of Resistant Gene Analogs from Wheat
    Research Faculty: Jose Costa.
  • Biodiversity of fungal endophytes in rubber trees: Towards understanding their role as plant protection agents.
    Research Faculty: Priscila Chaverri.

    This project will characterize fungal endophytic species in rubber trees (Hevea brasiliensis) to evaluate their potential role as plant protection agents. Some suggest that symbiotic fungal endophytes have coevolved with host plants to protect them from natural enemies. Rubber trees grown in plantations suffer from a variety of plant diseases, and endophytes may play a role in their protection. Because most fungal endophytes are horizontally transmitted, seeds from H. brasiliensis that are used in plantations may lack coevolved endophytes. Based on this premise, it is hypothesized that rubber trees in the wild host greater species richness and abundance of fungal endophytes than trees in plantations. If this hypothesis is supported, plantation trees may lack beneficial endophytes that could prevent some diseases and pests found on plantations. The diversity and species composition of fungal endophytes in rubber trees in their native (i.e. Upper Amazon) and managed settings (i.e. plantations) will be studied through fieldwork; isolation and cultivation of endophytes from different parts of the tree; and identification of fungal species using morphological and molecular approaches. Preliminary assays and experiments on the antifungal properties of these endophytes will also be conducted.
  • Systematics of plant pathogenic and endophytic fungi based on multigene phylogenies.
    Research Faculty: Priscila Chaverri.

    This project will characterize plant pathogenic and endophytic fungi, with special emphasis in the Colletotrichum gloeosporioides complex. Colletotrichum gloeosporioides causes important diseases in many kinds of crops. In addition, C. gloeosporioides is one of the most common endophytes in leaves of dicotyledoneous plants.
  • Fungal diversity in Saharan Dust Storms
    Research Faculty: Priscila Chaverri.

    This project deals with the identification of fungi that travel in Saharan dust storms and its potential threats to agriculture in the United States and other countries in the Americas. In collaboration with Dr. Vernon Morris (Atmospheric Sciences Department, Howard University), samples are being collected, fungi are being identified using morphology and DNA sequences, and the most likely geographical source of these dust samples is being tracked.
  • Monographic studies of the plant- and insect-associated genera: Nectria, Neonectria, and Cosmospora (Nectriaceae, Hypocreales).
    Research Faculty: Priscila Chaverri.

    This study will define the taxonomy of three major genera of the Nectriaceae: Nectria, Cosmospora, and Neonectria. These genera are significant because they include several species that are widespread plant pathogens and potential biological control agents of insects. None of these genera have received modern monographic treatment. The proposed monographic projects include: (1) Nectria with Tubercularia asexual states, a group of about 30–40 taxa. Most species of Nectria occur on recently dead hardwood trees in temperate and tropical regions. (2) Cosmospora with asexual states in acremonium-like, Chaetopsina, Fusarium sect. Eupionnotes, Stilbella, verticillium-like, and Volutella. Cosmospora occur primarily on stromatic fungi and insects. (3) Neonectria with Cylindrocarpon asexual states. This genus includes species that cause cankers on hardwood and conifer trees in temperate and tropical regions, a subgroup common on recently dead woody plants in the tropics, and another group isolated from soil. The taxonomy of these genera will be studied using morphology, microscopy, cultural characteristics, and DNA-sequence analyses.

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