Faculty Expertise
Dr. Matthew Levi along with his team (left to right: Levi, Matthew Thibodeaux, Samantha Biernat, Madelyn Willis, Jason Wheatley, Shea Hoffman) helped prepare the soil pits last week and helped with judging and scoring at the Georgia 4-H Land Judging event held at the J. Phil Campbell Sr. Research and Education Center.
The department was well-represented at the event. Dr. Gary Hawkins prepared the site for the contest and undergraduate coordinator, Dr. Jessica Barb, had a CRSS table set up with information and giveaways for prospective students.
Georgia 4-H Land Judging prepares youth to protect and improve land through leadership training and a state competition. This program gives youth an appreciation for soil and the opportunity to learn soil structure, the power of erosion, land classification and proper land treatment. Georgia 4-H Land Judging teaches youth how to evaluate soils and understand best land uses in a fun, hand-on environment.
Congratulations to Drs. Nick Basinger (Associate Professor) and Jennifer Thompson (Associate Research Scientist) on receiving funding ($502,282) for their grant entitled, “Climate-Smart Cotton: Developing Precision Regenerative Practices and Market Opportunities for Addressing Climate Change in the Cotton Belt.”
The Basinger Weed Science Lab focuses on the alteration and manipulation of the agroecosystem and non-cropland areas to reduce the impacts of weeds. Its research includes exploring the ways and means of weed interference and crop-weed interactions.
Thompson is the director of UGA's Social Sustainability of Agriculture and Food Systems Lab is a team of interdisciplinary scholars using their expertise in qualitative and mixed social science research methods to examine the relationship between health, social justice, agroecology, and food systems.
Student Achievement
Graduate student Maria Teresa Tancredi (advised by Jennifer Jo Thompson) has, in the past year, been working on a collaboration with American Farmland Trust’s Women for the Land for one of the studies for her Ph.D.
As part of the collaboration, Tancredi did a summer fellowship with them and created three reports and a blogpost to share some of the findings of her research.
Congratulations, Maria Teresa, on your excellent scholarship!
Four Institute for Integrative Precision Agriculture (and department of Crop and Soil Sciences) graduate students were named “Outstanding Graduate Students” at the 16th International Conference on Precision Agriculture held in Manhattan, Kansas.
Congratulations to Binita Ghimire (advised by Dr. Lorena Lacerda, UGA-Athens), Emily Bedwell (advised by Dr. George Vellidis, UGA-Tifton , Cole Byers (advised by Dr. Glen Rains, UGA-Tifton, and Amrinder Jakhar (advised by Dr. Leo Bastos, UGA-Athens) for this achievement!
The 16th International Conference on Precision Agriculture highlights significant research and its applications in precision agriculture and showcase emerging technologies and information management for agriculture.
Emily Bedwell, a graduate student advised by Dr. George Vellidis, has been selected to participate in the International Soil Moisture School in Budapest, Hungary on July 14-17, 2024.
The school is intended for Ph.D. scholars, postdocs, and early career scientists interested in learning how to collect and utilize soil moisture resources from in situ and microwave satellite sensors.
Bedwell is one of only three graduate students in the United States awarded a Fulbright scholarship that will cover all her travel expenses.
Congratulations on this honor, Emily!
Contact Us
Main Office: 706-542-2461
Fax: 706-542-0914
Miller Plant Sciences Building
120 Carlton Street
Athens GA 30602