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Faculty

List of Faculty Section Affiliation

Husein Ajwa
Specialist in CE -- Soil and water management, methyl bromide alternatives, cool-season vegetables.
(831) 755-2823
haajwa@ucdavis.edu
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


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Kassim Al-Khatib
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kalkhatib@ucdavis.edu
Section: Unknown


Diane M. Beckles
Assistant Professor & Assistant Plant Biologist -- Genetic and biochemical mechanisms controlling carbon allocation in crop plants.
(530) 754-4779 | 133 ASMUNDSON
dmbeckles@ucdavis.edu
Section: Agricultural Plant Biology


Alan Bennett
Professor and Director of PIPRA -- Molecular biology of fruit ripening and Director of Public Intellectual Property Resource for Agriculture.
(530) 752-1411 | 1117 PRB
abbennett@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Primary - Agricultural Plant Biology
Secondary - Horticultural Sciences


Alison Berry
Professor -- Assessment of nitrogen-fixing landscape plants; root and root nodule development.
(530) 752-7683 | 2228 PES
amberry@ucdavis.edu
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Arnold Bloom
Professor -- Nutrient acquisition and carbon assimilation in relation to environmental stress; mechanisms of nitrogen uptake and assimilation.
(530) 752-1743 | 102 ASMUNDSON
ajbloom@ucdavis.edu
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Eduardo Blumwald
Professor and Will W. Lester Endowed Chair -- Cellular and molecular bases of adaptation of plants to biotic and abiotic stress; The molecular bases of fruit quality .
(530) 752-4640 | 1119 PRB
eblumwald@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Primary - Agricultural Plant Biology
Secondary - Horticultural Sciences


Kent Bradford
Professor and Director of the Seed Biotechnology Center -- Development, maintenance, and expression of seed quality; plant water relations; developmental and growth regulation.
(530) 752-6087 | 1107 PRB
kjbradford@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Agricultural Plant Biology


Patrick Brown
Professor and Director of International Programs -- Physiology and biochemistry of plant nutrient uptake, interactions of nutrition with disease resistance and the selection of crops with improved nutrient efficiency.
(530) 752-0929 | 3045 WICKSON
phbrown@ucdavis.edu
Section: Horticultural Sciences


David Burger
Professor and Director, Slosson Ornamental Horticulture Research Endowment -- Woody plant physiology; turfgrass management; microcalorimetry.
(530) 752-0398 | 2057 WICKSON
dwburger@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Horticultural Sciences


Mary Cadenasso
Assistant Professor -- Investigating the effect of urbanization on plant community and nutrient dynamics and integrating ecological and social theories and urban design to enhance understanding and development of cities as sustainable coupled human-natural systems. Study exchanges of nutrients, pollutants, and organisms across landscape boundaries such as forest edges and riparian zones. Work across scales in metropolitan, semi-arid savanna and forest systems.
(530) 754-6151 | 1314 PES
mlcadenasso@ucdavis.edu
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Marita Cantwell
Postharvest Specialist in CE -- Postharvest physiology, handling, and storage of vegetables, including specialty and fresh cut vegetables.
(530) 752-7305 | 106 MANN LAB
micantwell@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Horticultural Sciences


Roger Chetelat
Geneticist and Director, C.M. Rick Tomato Genetics Resource Center -- Molecular and classical genetics of tomato; interspecific reproductive barriers and self-incompatibility; genetic recombination in plants; natural diversity.
(530) 752-6726 | 104 ASMUNDSON
trchetelat@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Agricultural Plant Biology


Carlos H. Crisosto
Specialist in CE and Postharvest Physiologist -- Fruit Quality and Technology.
(530) 752-7549
chcrisosto@ucdavis.edu
Section: Horticultural Sciences


Abhaya Dandekar
Professor -- Transfer, expression and regulation of foreign genes in fruit and nut crops.
(530) 752-7784 | 1059 WICKSON
amdandekar@ucdavis.edu
Section: Primary - Agricultural Plant Biology
Secondary - Horticultural Sciences


Theodore DeJong
Professor and CE Specialist -- Environmental plant physiology; photosynthetic efficiency of tree crops relative to the utilization of nitrogen, water, and solar radiation.
(530) 752-1843 | 3037 WICKSON
tmdejong@ucdavis.edu
Section: Horticultural Sciences


Montague (Tag) Demment
Professor and Director, Global Livestock Collaborative Research Program -- Feeding ecology and nutrition of domestic and wild herbivores.
(530) 752-7757 | 258A HUNT
mwdemment@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Joseph DiTomaso
Specialist in CE and Director of the Weed Research and Information Center -- Taxonomy, ecology, physiology, and control of rangeland, forestry and wetland weeds; poisonous plants.
(530) 754-8715 | 290 ROBBINS
jmditomaso@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


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Georgia Drakakaki
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gdrakakaki@ucdavis.edu
Section: Unknown


Jorge Dubcovsky
Professor -- Genetics; wheat breeding and wheat genetics.
(530) 752-5159 | 281 HUNT
jdubcovsky@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Primary - Crop and Ecosystem Sciences
Secondary - Agricultural Plant Biology


Don Durzan
Professor -- Cell biology and biotechnolgy on embryogenesis in gymnosperms. Recovery of anti-cancer compounds from Taxus species. Nitric oxide signaling and metabolism of L-arginine. Naturally occuring guanidines.
(530) 752-0399 | 163 EH
djdurzan@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Primary - Crop and Ecosystem Sciences
Secondary - Agricultural Plant Biology


Jan Dvorak
Professor -- Evolution of plant genomes and chromosomes; evolution of wheat and related species; construction of linkage maps based on molecular markers in wheat and related species in the tibe Triticeae; mechanism of the action of the Ph1 gene of wheat on crossing over between homoeologous chromosomes; molecular mechanisms of salt stress tolerance in wheat and its improvement.
(530) 752-6549 | 271 HUNT
jdvorak@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Richard Evans
Specialist in CE and Director of the Ornamental Horticulture Research and Information Center -- Management of commercial flower and nursery crops; nutrition of ornamental plants; container soil-plant interactions; propagation, production, and field establishment of plants for ecological restoration.
(530) 752-6617 | 2051 WICKSON
ryevans@ucdavis.edu
Section: Primary - Horticultural Sciences
Secondary - Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Valerie Eviner
Assistant Professor & Assistant Ecologist in AES -- Using a mechanistic understanding of plant-soil interactions to increase our understanding and effective management of: invasions, restoration, biogeochemical cycling, global change, grazing systems, and sustainable agriculture.
(530) 752-8538 | 1312 PES
veviner@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Steven Fennimore
Specialist in CE -- Weed management in vegetable crops and small fruits as well as weed seed physiology and seed bank ecology. -- Weed management in vegetable crops and small fruits as well as weed seed physiology and seed bank ecology.
(831) 755-2896
safennimore@ucdavis.edu
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Louise Ferguson
Specialist in CE and Director of the Fruit and Nut Research and Information Center -- Pistachios, olives, figs, citrus, persimmons.
(530) 752-0507 | 2051 WICKSON
louise@uckac.edu
Section: Horticultural Sciences


Albert Fischer
Associate Professor -- Ecophysiology and competition of weeds in rice, ecology, herbicide-resistant weeds, integrated weed management.
(530) 752-7386 | 279 ROBBINS
ajfischer@ucdavis.edu
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Shu Geng
Professor -- Agricultural/systems; modeling and simulation of environmental impact on agricultural production and food systems; productivity and risk assessment; comparisons of agricultural systems in Pacific Rim countries. Fluent in Chinese.
(530) 752-6939 | 233 HUNT
sgeng@ucdavis.edu
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Melvin George
Specialist in CE -- Range and pasture improvement, grazing management, rangeland water quality, rangeland management practices, ranch planning, ecological sites, state and transition models.
(530) 752-1720 | 2232 PES
mrgeorge@ucdavis.edu
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Paul Gepts
Professor -- Biodiversity and genetic resources conservation; crop domestication and evolution; structural genomics and molecular evolution.
(530) 752-7743 | 1242 PES
plgepts@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Thomas Gradziel
Professor -- Genetics and breeding of Prunus species.
(530) 752-1575 | 2055 WICKSON
tmgradziel@ucdavis.edu
Section: Horticultural Sciences


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Brad Hanson
Assistant Specialist in CE -- Weed management in perennial crops and methyl bromide alternatives.
(530) 752-8115 | 276 ROBBINS
bhanson@ucdavis.edu
Section: Unknown


James Harding
Professor -- Genetics and breeding of flower crops with emphasis on Gerbera; multivariate statistical methods; multitrait selection, inbreeding and crossbreeding; clonal selection and cultivar evaluation.
(530) 752-0349 | 193 EH
jaharding@ucdavis.edu
Section: Horticultural Sciences


Timothy Hartz
Specialist in CE -- Culture and management of warm season vegetables; soil and plant fertility; crop stand establishment.
(530) 752-1738 | 103 ASMUNDSON
tkhartz@ucdavis.edu
Section: Horticultural Sciences


James Hill
Specialist in CE -- Conducts research and education programs on rice based cropping systems with focus on production technologies such as direct seeding; weed control; nutrition; residue management; and the relationship of these factors to environmental quality.
(530) 752-3458 | 217 HUNT
jehill@ucdavis.edu
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Robert Hutmacher
Cooperative Extension Specialist and Director, UC West Side Research & Extension Center -- cotton production and quality issues, plant water stress, microirrigation.
(661) 746-8020
rbhutmacher@ucdavis.edu
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Kentaro Inoue
Associate Professor -- Plastid biogenesis - protein import, isoprenoid metabolism.
(530) 752-7931 | 131 ASMUNDSON
kinoue@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Agricultural Plant Biology


Marie Jasieniuk
Associate Professor -- Population genetics, molecular ecology, and evolution of agricultural weeds and invasive plants.
(530) 752-8166 | 269 ROBBINS
mjasien@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Judy Jernstedt
Professor -- Investigates involvement of the microtubule cyto skeleton in processes of cell division, enlargement and differentiation in plants, focusing on cell, tissue and organ-like development; meristem determination; leaf development; plant anatomy and morphology.
(530) 752-7166 | 213 HUNT
jjernstedt@ucdavis.edu
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


R. Scott Johnson
Specialist in CE -- Freestone peaches, nectarines, plums, apples and kiwifruit.
(559) 646-6547
sjohnson@uckac.edu
Section: Horticultural Sciences


Stephen Kaffka
Specialist in CE -- Investigates ways to improve crop production efficiency and environmental quality relative to crop prodution. Works at the commodity and farming systems levels.
(530) 752-8108 | 2308 PES
srkaffka@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Daniel Kliebenstein
Associate Professor -- Why do plants have secondary metabolites and how are they produced and regulated?. -- Why do plants have secondary metabolites and how are they produced and regulated?.
(530) 754-7775 | 129 ASMUNDSON
kliebenstein@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Agricultural Plant Biology


John Labavitch
Professor -- Postharvest biology of fruits and nuts - emphasis on cell wall polysaccharide metabolism and biochemistry of post-pathogen interactions.
(530) 752-0920 | 1109 PRB
jmlabavitch@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Primary - Agricultural Plant Biology
Secondary - Horticultural Sciences


Emilio Laca
Professor -- Foraging behavior, range management, spatial heterogenicity, and geostatistical applications. Agricultural ecologist. -- Foraging behavior, range management, spatial heterogenicity, and geostatistical applications. Agricultural ecologist.
(530) 754-4083 | 2306 PES
ealaca@ucdavis.edu
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Bruce Lampinen
Associate Specialist in Cooperative Extension -- Coordination of extension teaching and research activities for almonds and walnuts on a statewide basis.
(530) 752-2588 | 2043 WICKSON
bdlampinen@ucdavis.edu
Section: Horticultural Sciences


W. Thomas Lanini
Specialist in CE -- Low input weed control in vegetables and agronomic crops.
(530) 752-4476 | 278 ROBBINS
wtlanini@ucdavis.edu
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Kirk Larson
Pomologist (60%) and CE Specialist (40%) -- Strawberry production physiology and management; strawberry breeding; statewide, national, and international research and outreach; fluent in Spanish. .
(949) 857-0136
kdlarson@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Horticultural Sciences


Andrew Latimer
Assistant Professor and Assistant Ecologist in AES -- Plant ecology, statistical modeling, biogeography of mediterranean-climate regions, conservation biology law & policy.
(530) 752-0896 | 1138 PES
amlatimer@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


J. Heiner Lieth
Professor -- Crop ecology of greenhouse and nursery crops; greenhouse environment control automation; modeling of ornamental crops; automated irrigation.
(530) 752-7198 | 3057 WICKSON
jhlieth@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Primary - Horticultural Sciences
Secondary - Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Richard Michelmore
Professor The Genome Center and Department of Plant Sciences (CA&ES);Section of Molecular and Cellular Biology (CBS); Medical Microbiology and Immunology (SOM) -- Comparative functional genomics of disease resistance, lettuce genomics and breeding.
(530) 752-1729 | 4311 GBSF
rwmichelmore@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Agricultural Plant Biology


Elizabeth Mitcham
Specialist in CE -- Alternatives to postharvest chemicals for control of insects, decay and physiological disorders; fruit responses to postharvest handling systems.
(530) 752-7512 | 1047 WICKSON
ejmitcham@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Horticultural Sciences


Jeffrey Mitchell
Associate Specialist in CE -- Vegetable production; water management; agricultural ecology; crop management impacts on postharvest quality.
(559) 646-6565
mitchell@uckac.edu
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


David Neale
Professor -- My primary research interest is in the discovery and understanding of the function of genes in forest trees, especially those controlling complex traits.
(530) 754-8431 | 1107 EH
dbneale@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Agricultural Plant Biology


Donald Nevins
Professor and Plant Physiologist in the Experiment Station -- Complex carbohydrates comprising the plant cell wall; enzymic mechanisms for the bioconversion of plant materials.
(530) 752-1747 | 104 MANN LAB
djnevins@ucdavis.edu
Section: Agricultural Plant Biology


Lorence Oki
Associate Specialist in CE (joint appointment with Landscape Architecture Program) -- Irrigation and runoff managment in urban horticulture; water quality effects on plant growth; evaluation and introduction of Mediterranean climate adapted plants for use in landscape horticulture.
(530) 754-4135 | 1108 ENV HORT
lroki@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Primary - Horticultural Sciences
Secondary - Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Dan Parfitt
Pomologist -- Genetics of fruit crops - genetic diversity, germplasm use, pistachio breeding.
(530) 752-7031 | 2025 WICKSON
deparfitt@ucdavis.edu
Section: Primary - Horticultural Sciences
Secondary - Agricultural Plant Biology


Donald Phillips
Professor -- Agronomy, crop physiology, soil microbiology, plant-microbe interactions, soil food webs.
(530) 752-1891 | 1230 PES
daphillips@ucdavis.edu
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Richard Plant
Professor -- Application of systems analysis to crop and resource management; including statistical analysis; geographic information systems; and mathematical modeling.
(530) 752-1705 | 232 HUNT
replant@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Vito Polito
Professor and Co-chair UC Davis Olive Center -- Reproductive biology of fruit tree species emphasizing development, morphology and cell biology of pollination and fruit set.
(530) 752-0123 | 3025 WICKSON
vspolito@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Horticultural Sciences


Daniel Potter
Professor -- Plant systematics; taxonomy, evolution, and phylogenetic relationships of fruit crops and their wild relatives; molecular approaches to phylogeny reconstruction; ethnobotany. -- Plant systematics; taxonomy, evolution, and phylogenetic relationships of fruit crops and their wild relatives; molecular approaches to phylogeny reconstruction; ethnobotany.
(530) 754-6141 | 2041 WICKSON
dpotter@ucdavis.edu
Section: Primary - Crop and Ecosystem Sciences
Secondary - Horticultural Sciences


Daniel Putnam
Specialist in CE -- Alfalfa and forage crops systems, alternative field crops, crop ecology.
(530) 752-8982 | 2240 PES
dhputnam@ucdavis.edu
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Carlos F. Quiros
Professor -- Structure and evolution of the Brassica structural and comparative genomics; genetics and breeding of secondary metabolites in Brassica crops species; celery breeding and genetics.
(530) 752-1734 | 116 ASMUNDSON
cfquiros@ucdavis.edu
Section: Agricultural Plant Biology


Michael Reid
Professor -- Postharvest technology; handling and marketing of environmental plants; postharvest physiology; physiology of flowering; chilling injury; action of ethylene; molecular biology of flower senescence.
(530) 754-6751 | 102 EH
msreid@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Primary - Horticultural Sciences
Secondary - Agricultural Plant Biology


Kevin Rice
Professor -- Plant population ecology; rangeland ecology; restoration ecology; conservation biology; ecological genetics.
(530) 752-8529 | 2224 PES
kjrice@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Jeffrey Ross-Ibarra
Assistant Professor and Assistant Plant Biologist in AES -- Crop evolution, domestication, and population genetics.
(530) 752-1152
rossibarra@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Agricultural Plant Biology


Mikal Saltveit
Professor -- Postharvest physiology; physiology of plant responses to abiotic stress.
(530) 752-1815 | 107 MANN LAB
mesaltveit@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Horticultural Sciences


Kenneth Shackel
Professor -- The impact of tree water status on productivity and the water relations and physiological activity of fruit.
(530) 752-0928 | 3039 WICKSON
kashackel@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Primary - Horticultural Sciences
Secondary - Agricultural Plant Biology


Douglas Shaw
Professor -- Genetics and breeding of small fruits, especially strawberries.
(530) 752-0905 | 2021 WICKSON
dvshaw@ucdavis.edu
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Johan Six
Professor and Full Professional Researcher -- Agroecology. and Full Professional Researcher -- Agroecology.
(530) 752-1212 | 2136 PES
jwsix@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Dina St. Clair
Professor -- Tomato breeding and genetics; manipulation of quantitatively inherited traits for plant improvement; gene introgression from wild Lycopersicon species; use of molecular markers in breeding.
(530) 752-1740 | 114 ASMUNDSON
dastclair@ucdavis.edu
Section: Primary - Crop and Ecosystem Sciences
Secondary - Agricultural Plant Biology


Venkatesan Sundaresan
Professor -- Gametogenisis and early embryogenisis in Arabidopsis. Functional genomics by large scale insertional mutagenesis in Arabidopsis and rice.
(530) 754-9677 | 2133 LSA
sundar@ucdavis.edu
Section: Agricultural Plant Biology


Trevor Suslow
Specialist in CE -- Integrated technologies for posthavest quality; postharvest pathology and biocontrol; postharvest quality and safety issues; refrigerated transportation.
(530) 754-8313 | 103 MANN LAB
tvsuslow@ucdavis.edu
Section: Horticultural Sciences


Kenneth Tate
Specialist in CE Vice Chair for Outreach and Extension -- rangeland watershed science.
(530) 754-8988 | 3132 PES
kwtate@ucdavis.edu
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Steven Temple
Specialist in CE -- Agronomy and host plant resistance breeding of grain legumes, sustainable farming systems, fluent in Spanish.
(530) 752-8216 | 1234 PES
srtemple@ucdavis.edu
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Larry Teuber
Professor -- Genetics and biology of floral characters influencing alfalfa pollination by honey bees, resistance to lygus bugs and whiteflies, tolerance to "summer dry-down" irrigation management, fall dormancy.
(530) 752-2461 | 1232 PES
lrteuber@ucdavis.edu
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Li Tian
Assistant Professor -- Phytonutrient biochemistry and physiology; Biosynthesis, accumulation and function of carotenoids and polyphenols in plants; Targeted improvement of crop phytonutrient composition and content for enhanced nutritional and medicinal values..
(530) 752-0940 | 221 ASMUNDSON
ltian@ucdavis.edu
Section: Agricultural Plant Biology


Chris van Kessel
Professor and Department Chair -- Agronomy, soil fertility, nutrient cycling, cropping systems, international agriculture.
(530) 752-7323 | 1210A PES
cvankessel@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


John Yoder
Professor -- Plant-plant communications, plant molecular genetics.
(530) 752-1741 | 101 ASMUNDSON
jiyoder@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Agricultural Plant Biology


Truman Young
Professor -- Restoration Ecology and Conservation Biology. Plant population and community ecology in human-dominated landscapes; semi-arid ecosystems.
(530) 754-9925 | 2234 PES
tpyoung@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Crop and Ecosystem Sciences


Florence Zakharov
Assistant Professor -- Flavor and aroma biology of fruit and vegetable crops; molecular and biochemical aspects of aroma volatile formation and regulation during fruit development and after harvest.
(530) 752-4374 | 1057 WH
fnegre@ucdavis.edu | homepage
Section: Agricultural Plant Biology