Specialty

Crop Physiology / Agroecology

Research

Research at the Rajan Lab centers around the theme of climate smart farming.

Increasing resilience and adaptive capacity of agricultural production systems under the realm of climate change requires promotion of efficient and sustainable farming systems and practices. Perpetuation of current farming practices can make agricultural landscapes extremely vulnerable to soil erosion, nutrient losses, increased greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, decreased carbon sequestration and ground water depletion. To meet these challenges, comprehensive knowledge of the functioning of agricultural systems is essential. We need to redesign and develop novel cropping system practices to accomplish the goals of profitability, environmental and ecological sustainability, and food, fiber, and energy security.

To develop climate smart farming practices, we use a number of tools including soil, plant and atmospheric measurements, novel traits such as biological nitrification inhibition (BNI), cover cropping and organic farming strategies and remote sensing including sensors for mapping root growth and UAV-based sensors for assessing crop stress and spatial variability.

Support Staff and Students

Philip Hinson | Giordano Fontana | Jennifer MacMillan | Noriki Miyanaka | Dinesh Phuyal | Pramod Pokhrel | Chiranjibi Poudyal | Rahul Raman | Musfiq-Us-Salehin | Rajan Shrestha | Jeffrey Siegfried | William Wheeler | Merlin Yerra

Courses Taught

SCSC 441 – Advances in Agronomic Sciences (Spring; 3-0) SCSC 441 is a capstone course designed to provide the Plant and Environmental Soil Science Degree senior students (‘Crops’ emphasis) with a knowledge base of advanced farming technologies and decision-making skills. As a capstone course, SCSC 441 is designed to demonstrate the accumulated knowledge that a student expected to have learned through various courses during the major program. Students should demonstrate their ability to gather relevant data, synthesize information, and apply their broad knowledge in topics related to agronomy and soil science.

Crop Physiology and Simulation Modeling (Spring; 3-0) This course provides students a better understanding of major plant physiological processes and the effect of environment and crop management on these processes. Further, the course will introduce the students to the basic principles employed in simulation modeling of crop growth and development. The course will introduce a crop model and familiarize students with running the model. Students will analyze crop growth in relation to varying management and environmental conditions including future climate using the crop model.

Lab Costs

Sample analysis cost: $14/sample for soil organic carbon and total nitrogen.