View publications under the "Works" tab.
I am a northern Ohio native and completed my BS in Biology at The Ohio State University. I became interested in plant science through my Senior Honors project under the guidance of Dr. W. R. Sharp, which involved the effects of asbestos contamination on plant growth and development. I then accepted a graduate assistantship with Dr. Douglas P. Maxwell in the Department of Plant Pathology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. There I studied the interaction of Phytophthora medicaginis with alfalfa using cytological and biochemical methods. I received my M.S. degree in 1979 and Ph.D. degree in 1982. During my graduate studies I developed a deep appreciation of the genus Phytophthora, and have continued to work with this genus of plant pathogens in some capacity throughout my career. In 1982 I joined DNA Plant Technology Corporation, a plant biotechnology firm in southern New Jersey. Less than two years later I become part of a "spin-off" called Agri-Diagnostics Associates, where we developed monoclonal antibody-based diagnostic kits for detection of plant pathogens, including species of Phytophthora, Rhizoctonia, Sclerotinia, Septoria and Mycosphaerella. In 1991 I joined the faculty in the Department of Plant Pathology at OSU, focusing on research and extension in vegetable crop diseases.
- Presidential Award, The American Phytopathological Society, 2017
- The Ohio State University OARDC Multi-Disciplinary Team Research Award, 2013
- Fellow, The American Phytopathological Society, 2011
-OARDC News Release
- International IPM Excellence Award, IPM CRSP team member, 2009
- Gamma Sigma Delta International Award of Merit, 2007
- The American Phytopathological Society International Service Award, 2002
- Philippines Department of Agriculture Bureau of Agricultural Research Director’s Award 2001
- The Ohio State University Plant Pathology Department Research Award, 1999
- Honorary Professor, D’nepropetrovsk State Agricultural University, Ukraine, 1997
Websites and Resources
Research Area
My program includes basic and applied research on the etiology and management of diseases of vegetable crops, the characterization of plant pathogens, and One Health approaches to microbial threats. Efforts are focused on:
- Sustainable/integrated vegetable disease management in open field and protected culture (hydroponic and soil-based greenhouse, high tunnel) systems
- Optimization and mechanisms of anaerobic soil disinfestation
- Etiology of emerging diseases
- Molecular characterization of pathogens relevant to vegetable agroecosystems
- Detection technologies for pathogens and beneficial microorganisms
- Application of small molecule inhibitors of bacterial growth in management of vegetable diseases caused by bacterial pathogens
- Bioluminescent imaging if bacterial-plant interactions
- One Health approaches to microbial threats including fresh produce-associated zoonotic pathogens and antimicrobial resistance
Teaching
- Diagnostic Field Plant Pathology (PLNTPTH 5685), offered every other Summer as a 2-week course
- Fruit and Vegetable Diseases (PLNTPTH 5150) (co-taught with Melanie Ivey); offered every other Spring semester
- Guest lectures in Plant Disease Management (PLNTPTH 5603)
- Advising of PhD and MS students
- Advising of postdocs, visiting scientists and scholars, and undergraduate interns
Extension
- Disease management for vegetable crops for Ohio clientele including county educators and state personnel, growers and private sector crop protection professionals
- Development of media (videos, slide sets, fact sheets, web page content; popular press material), teaching (presentations), participation in grower-oriented meetings and workshops, farm visits, and commercial vegetable disease diagnosis
International Programs
USAID IPM Innovation Lab (formerly IPM Collaborative Research Support Program) since 1994, focused on developing, with local scientists, solutions to serious diseases that limit the yield, quality and income generation potential of vegetable crops
- The Philippines site 1998-2006
- Bangladesh site 2000-2006
- South Asia site in Bangladesh, India and Nepal 2006-2014
- International Plant Diagnostic Network, linking 15 developing countries in East and West Africa, Asia and Central America 2006-2014; built capacity for disease and pest diagnostics through training and technology development and application
- South/Southeast Asia site in Bangladesh, Nepal & Cambodia 2014-present
- East Africa site in Tanzania, Kenya & Ethiopia 2014-present
Provide advice on vegetable disease diagnostics and management worldwide, including projects or consultancies in Canada, Egypt, Ukraine, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Nigeria, Senegal and Turkey.