Sustainable Agriculture Faculty

More than thirty University of Minnesota faculty members serve as advisors to students in the Sustainable Agricultural Systems minor degree program.  These professors come from a variety of disciplines; including agricultural engineering, agronomy, applied economics, entomology, family social science, food science and nutrition, forestry, horticulture, plant biology, plant pathology, soil science, and veterinary medicine.

Deborah Allan, Professor, Department of Soil, Water, and Climate
Phone: 612-625-3158
E-mail: allan001@umn.edu
Web page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: The plant root-soil interface; understanding roots and rhizosphere processes for the improved management of nutrient inputs and efficiency of nutrient use; monitoring soil quality, carbon and nitrogen dynamics and storage in different cropping and tillage systems.
Courses taught: SOIL 5611 Soil Fertility and Biology, SOIL 3612 Soil and Environmental Biology


David Andow, Professor, Department of Entomology
Phone: 612-624-5323
E-mail: dandow@umn.edu
Web page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Biological control of insect pests; the effect of agricultural diversity on insect populations, environmental effects of genetic engineering.
Courses taught: ENT 5320 Ecology of Agriculture, co-taught by Nicholas Jordan.


David D. Biesboer, Associate Professor, Department of Plant Biology
Phone: 612-625-1799
E-mail: biesboer@umn.edu
Web Page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: The use of competitive native grass species for control of noxious weeds along highway right-of-ways as alternatives to pesticide usage. The use of native, short-stature, warm season grasses adapted to dry, high saline, compacted soils as low maintenance cover along roadsides. Modeling of eco-toxicological chemicals produced by the transportation industry and methods for decreasing their input into the environment.


Vernon B. Cardwell, Professor, Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics
Phone: 612-625-6754
E-mail: cardw001@umn.edu
Web Page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Collaborative research efforts in the areas of seed physiology; system approaches to farming; and agricultural literacy for schoolchildren through the Food, Fiber, Environment and Natural Resource Education program.
Courses taught: AGRO 3005 Applied Crop Physiology and AGRO 4305 Crop Harvest, Storage and Utilization.


Iris Charvat, Associate Professor, Department of Plant Biology
Phone: 612-625-3199,
Email: charv001@umn.edu
Web Page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Rhizosphere microorganisms, especially arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, associated with native and naturalized plants in prairies and wetlands. Mycorrhizal associations: physiological / ecological studies. Use of mycorrhizal inoculum in habitat reclamation.
Courses taught: PBIO 1212 Plants and Society, BIOL 3007 Plant Biology: Diversity and Adaptation and BIOL 1901 Restoring Lands Back To Nature: Establishment of Prairies and Wetlands.

Sharon Danes, Professor, Department of Family Social Science
Phone: 612-625-9273
E-mail: sdanes@umn.edu
Web page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Interdynamics of family and business system issues that affect the viability of farm family businesses. Of particular interest is the contribution of farmwomen.

John Deen, Professor, College of Veterinary Medicine
Phone:  612-625-7784
E-mail: deenx003@umn.edu
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture:  Swine health and welfare, epidemiology of swine diseases, swine records and production optimization.

Ruth Dill-Macky , Associate Professor, Department of Plant Pathology
Phone: 612-625-2227
E-mail: ruthdm@umn.edu
Web Page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Epidemiology and management of plant diseases in field crop production systems with an emphasis on cereal grains. Development of field crop production systems with enhanced sustainability, and reduced pesticide use, through integrated management systems.
Courses taught: PLPA 1001 Microbes, Plants and People: The Social and Economic Impact of Plant Disease and PLPA 5204 Plant Disease Management.


Susan Galatowitsch, Assistant Professor, Department of Horticultural Science and Department of Landscape Architecture
Phone: 612-624-3242
E-mail: galat001@umn.edu
Web page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Factors affecting ecosystem recovery in restored wetlands, including land use and invasive species.
Courses taught: HORT 5015 Restoration and Reclamation Ecology, LA 5201 Field Techniques for Landscape Analysis and LA 5202 Landscape Ecology.


Jeffrey Gillman, Assistant Professor, Department of Horticultural Science
Phone: 612-624-7432
E-mail: gillm003@umn.edu
Web page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Sustainable agriculture problems including nutrient leaching and water conservation.
Courses taught: HORT 4041 & 5041Nursery Production and Management I & II.


Jeffrey L. Gunsolus, Associate Professor, Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics
Phone: 612-625-8130
E-mail: gunso001@umn.edu
Web Page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Integrated weed management techniques to reduce herbicide inputs and economic risk. Plan, implement, and evaluate statewide educational programs on weed biology and corn and soybean weed management. Courses taught: AGRO 3001 Introduction to Integrated Weed Management.


Craig Hassel, Associate Professor, Department of Food Science and Nutrition
Phone: 612-624-7288
Email: chassel@umn.edu
Web page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: My interests focus on diverse knowledge systems that may offer alternative perspectives through which to understand health and address health and food issues. The Medicinal Herb Network brings together health care practitioners using herbs and growers of medicinal herbs. Key research questions include developing criteria for medicinal herb quality, linking landscape biodiversity and health to human health. Woodlands Wisdom is a project which builds the capacity of Tribal Colleges to address food/health issues using both traditional knowledge and modern science in their community. A food and nutrition science curriculum has been developed and a research agenda focusing on local food systems is being developed.
Courses taught: AGRI 1000H Native American Perspective on Land Use and the Environment and CSPH 5111 Ways of Thinking About Health.


Emily Hoover, Professor. Horticultural Science, Morse-Alumni Distinguished Teaching Professor
Phone: 612-624-6220
E-mail: hoove001@umn.edu
Web page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Development of fruit crop production systems with enhanced sustainability through the use of integrated pest management; development of rootstocks with improved productivity, efficiency, and winter hardiness; use of decision case studies in research and education on agricultural sustainability.
Courses taught: HORT 1001 Plant Propagation, HORT 5031 Sustainable Fruit Production Systems and HORT 8005 Supervised Teaching Experience for Graduate Students (co-teach).


Nicholas Jordan, Professor, Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics
Phone: 612-625-3754
E-mail: jorda020@umn.edu
Web page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Application of plant population biology to problems in crop production, particularly weed management, and plant-soil biota interactions.
Courses taught: AGRO 5321 Ecology of Agricultural Systems.


Robert P. King, Professor, Department of Applied Economics
Phone: 612-625-9732
E-mail: kingr@umn.edu
Web Page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Management information systems; agribusiness management and organizational design; cooperatives and other collaborative marketing groups; retail food marketing.


Roger D. Moon, Professor, Department of Entomology
Phone: 612-624-2209
E-mail: rdmoon@umn.edu
Web page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Ecology of insects associated with domesticated animals and their environments; sustainable parasite management practices for efficient production and animal comfort; rotational grazing; biological control.
Courses taught: ENT 4281 Veterinary Entomology (Primary instructor), ENT 5045 Insect Population Dynamics (Co-instructor) and AGRO 5121 Applied Experimental Design (Co-instructor).


Helene Murray, Director, Minnesota Institute for Sustainable Agriculture Adjunct Faculty, Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics
Phone: 612-625-0220
E-mail: murra021@umn.edu
Web Page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Participatory research, systems research, decision cases and local food systems.


Kristen Nelson, Assistant Professor, Department of Forest Resources and Department of Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Biology
Phone: 612-624-1227
Email: nelso468@umn.edu
Web page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Human dimensions of natural resources and environmental management--community forestry, environmental sociology, dispute resolution, and participatory planning.
Courses taught: NRES 3202/5202 Conflict Management, Leadership and Planning, NRES 4195 Natural Resource Problem Solving and Planning, NRES 3251/5251 Natural Resources in International Sustainable Development.


Kent Olson, Associate Professor, Department of Applied Economics
Phone: 612-625-7723
E-mail: kdolson@umn.edu
Web page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Analysis of organic and other alternative crop management strategies; alternative policies for sustainable agriculture; analysis of decision making by farmers. Courses taught: APEC 3811 Principles of Farm Management. 


James H. Orf, Professor, Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics
Phone: 612-625-8275
E-mail: orfxx001@umn.edu
Web Page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Soybean variety development for general and value-added usage. Collaborative research areas: genetic basis for developing soybeans that are more competitive with weeds; determination of the usefulness of molecular marker technology in improving soybean protein, oil, quantitative traits, and soybean cyst nematode resistance; biological nitrogen fixation.
Courses taught: AGRO 4401 Plant Genetics and Breeding.


Paul Porter, Associate Professor, Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics
Phone: 612-625-6719
Email: pporter@umn.edu
Web page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Cropping Systems, Crop Rotation, Cover Crops, and Canola. Courses Taught: AGRO 4605 Senior Capstone: Leadership, Decision Making, and Problem Solving, AGRO 4660 Management Strategies for Crop Production, AGRO 5999 Agroecosystems Analysis Field Course, AGRO 8605 Advanced Management of Agroecosystems

Paul C. Rosenblatt, Professor, Department of Family Social Sciences
Phone: 612-625-3120
E-mail: prosenbl@umn.edu
Web Page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Research on families, including families involved in sustainable agriculture. Teaching qualitative family research methods; family theory; diversity and families.
Courses taught: FSOS 8013 Qualitative Family Research Methods.


Michael Russelle, Soil Scientist, USDA-Agricultural Research Service Adjunct Professor, Department of Soil, Water, and Climate
Phone: 612-625-8145
Email: russelle@soils.umn.edu
Web page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Improve nitrogen recycling on dairy farms; Improve management strategies for intensively grazed pastures; Optimize nutrient reuse from by-products; Prevent degradation of surface and ground water by nitrogen and develop effective remediation strategies. Courses Taught: Occasional lecturer. Position is 100% research.


Craig Sheaffer, Professor, Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics
Phone: 612-625-7224
E-mail: sheaf001@umn.edu
http://agronomy.cfans.umn.edu/People/FacultyDirectory/SheafferCraigC/Web page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Culture and ecology of annual and perennial legumes in cropping systems; alternative perennial legumes for rotational grazing of pastures. Courses taught: SAGR 8010 Sustainable Agriculture Colloquium.


Chery Smith, Assistant Professor, Department of Food Science and Nutrition.
Phone: 612-624-2217
E-mail: csmith@umn.edu
Web page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Food systems; nutrition and community assessments; food and culture; evaluation of eco-tourism on the nutritional status of Sherpas; and obesity prevention in minority populations.
Courses taught: FSCN 4614 Community Nutrition and FSCN 3615 Socio-Cultural Aspects of Food, Nutrition, and Health.


Marla Spivak, Associate Professor and Extension Entomologist -Apiculture, Department of Entomology
Phone: 612-624-4798
E-mail: spiva001@umn.edu
Web page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Development of resistance to parasitic mites to reduce use of pesticides within honeybee colonies. Development of methods to conserve and rear native bumblebee pollinators. Regional extension activities (MN, WI, ND, SD, IA) on promoting diversification of beekeeping industry, pollination activities, queen rearing and stock selection.
Courses taught: ENT 4021 Honey Bees and Insect Societies and ENT 4022 Bee Management (intersession course).


Donald Wyse, Professor, Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics
Phone: 612-625-7064
Email: wysex001@umn.edu
Web Page
Research and Teaching Related to Sustainable Agriculture: Perennial weed control for grass and legume seed production groundwater quality. Course Taught: AGRO 4505 Biology, Ecology, and Management of Invasive Plants.