PSC Research
View USU's Digital Commons publications of Plants, Soils & Climate
Research Opportunities
Research is an essential part of most graduate degree programs. Its best to contact faculty in your area of interest prior to application for graduate school to secure the availability of a major professor and research assistant funding, if applicable. Please visit the "People" page of the website to determine possible faculty to work with. Some of the research interests in the department include, but are not limited to the following:- Control of weeds in crops and wildlands.
- Genetics and physiology of fruit, vegetable, ornamental, and field crops
- Biotechnology and functional genomics
- Evolution, genetic regulation, and utilization of apomixis and other developmental phenomena of higher plants
- Management of agronomic and horticultural production systems
- Horticultural landscape water management
- Urban landscape management including turfgrasses and ornamentals
- Soil formation and landscape evolution
- Soil, plant, water, and nutrient relationships
- Management of saline and sodic soils
- Alternative land uses Improved management of animal wastes and biosolids
- Management of soil microbial processes
- Drainage and irrigation systems
- Adaptations to weather and weather modifications
- Analyses and modification of large-scale surface evaporation from atmospheric boundary layer measurements
- Spatial and temporal properties of sun flecks in plant canopies
- Spatial variation in surface fluxes of heat and water vapor in semiarid regions
Research Groups
- Climate Science
- Center for Water Efficient Landscaping
- Crop Physiology Laboratory
- Fruits and Vegetables
- Invasive Plant Science Lab
- Pedology Group
- Soil Chemistry and Biogeochemistry
- Soil Microbial Ecology
- Soil Physics Group
- T.W. Daniel Experimental Forest Project
- Utah Small Grains Research
- Weed Science
Climate Science Research
Climate Science studies the interactions between the atmosphere and the living organisms on the planet or biosphere.
Soil Chemistry and Biogeochemistry
Soil chemistry involves the study of the chemical composition of soil components, their chemical properties, and the reactions that take place between the soil solution and soil solids.
Crop Physiology Laboratory
The CPL specializes in the use of controlled environments to examine whole-plant physiological responses to the environment. Primary studies are crop plants, however, research has evolved to include the use of plants to clean up contaminated soils.
Pedology Group
The Pedology Group focuses on the formation, morphology, classification, mapping, and modeling of soils in terrestrial ecosystems.
Soil Microbial Ecology
Soil microbial ecology is the study of biota that inhabit the soil, their functions, the processes that they mediate, and the effect of their activities on the character of the soil and the growth and health of plant life.
Soil Physics Group
The environmental soil physics group is engaged in modeling, measurement and interpretation of mass, energy flow, and transformation in porous media; observation and modeling of liquid behavior in porous media under gravity and reduced gravity for space exploration; development and application of electromagnetic measurement techniques for hydrology; structural and mineral physics of transport properties, and in situ characterization of soils using electromagnetic mapping techniques for hydropedology.
T.W. Daniel Experimental Forest Project
The USU Drought Management Initiative was funded to advance the understanding of drought in Utah and in the Western US. Instrumentation has been established in four of Utah’s major vegetation species.Weed Science
Weed Science research focuses on biological and ecological characteristics of weeds, as well as the development of tools and tactics to reduce weeds and their effects on crops, rangelands, forests, roadsides, and other natural and disturbed environments.Center for Water Efficient Landscaping
CWEL was created to conduct research on effective irrigation techniques, landscape water demand analysis, low-water use landscaping, and plant water needs.
Fruits and Vegetables
The Production Horticulture program at USU includes research and extension to support the production of quality vegetables and fruits in Utah and the Intermountain West.
Invasive Plant Science Lab
Its purpose is to add to current knowledge as well as aid in the development of new approaches that reduce invasive plant populations and their negative effects on widely differing ecosystems. Emphasis is placed on collaborative relationships with expertise in agriculture, natural resources, engineering, biology, economics, social science, and many other fields of study. Efforts are made to advance research through basic and applied studies and address educational needs through trainings and courses and supporting Extension programs.