Fredy Altpeter

Professor
Molecular Genetics & Biotechnology
(352) 273-3418

Dr. Altpeter’s research focuses on identifying, isolating and engineering limiting factors for genetic improvement of cereals, turf, forage and biomass/bioenergy grasses.

Zachary Brym

Associate Professor
Agroecologist
(786) 217-9238

Dr. Brym’s research and extension program explores how production systems can remain profitable while conserving natural resources and protecting the environment.

Jose Dubeux

Professor & Associate Chair  
Forage
NFREC | (850) 526-1618

Dr. Dubeux's research focuses on nutrient cycling in grazed ecosystems and sustainable intensification of livestock systems. 

Jason Ferrell

Chair and Professor
(352) 273-3685

Dr. Jason Ferrell is Professor and Department Chair in the Agronomy Department at the University of Florida.  He also serves as Director of the UF/IFAS Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants.

The Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants is a multidisciplinary group of faculty and staff whose mission is to develop and disseminate strategies for addressing the impact of invasive plants.

Robert Gilbert

Dean for Research and Executive Director of Academic Affairs

(352) 392-1784

Robert Gilbert was the Chair of the Agronomy Department from 2014-2018 and currently he is the UF/IFAS Dean for Research and Executive Director of Academic Affairs.

Kevin Kenworthy

Professor & Graduate Coordinator
Plant Breeding & Molecular Genetics
(352) 262-8719

Dr. K.E. Kenworthy's research focuses on developing improved turfgrass cultivars for home lawns, parks, highway right-of-ways, golf courses and athletic fields, with an emphasis on those that require fewer inputs while maintaining high turf quality. 

James Leary

Assistant Professor
Natural Resource & Environmental Management
(352) 273-2451

Dr. Leary’s research and extension program focuses on extending knowledge and technology to contribute to efficient and effective invasive plant species management in natural and managed landscapes. 

Dennis Odero

Professor
Weed Science
(561) 993-1509

Dr. Odero’s research focuses on development of effective integrated weed management programs for sugarcane and vegetables on both organic and mineral soils of south Florida. 

Esteban Rios

Associate Professor
Forage Breeding & Genetics
(352) 392-6189

Dr. Rios' research focuses on developing improved forage cultivars for subtropical and tropical agroecosystems with higher forage production and quality and enhanced abiotic and biotic stress responses.  

Brent Sellers

Professor and Center Director
Weed Science & Invasive Plants
RCREC | (863) 735-1314

Dr. Sellers' research and extension program focuses on pasture and rangeland weed management. He works to identify problematic weeds in pastures and rangeland and implement economically and environmentally sound control measures. 

Ben Sperry

Courtesy Faculty
Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants
(352) 392-6807

Dr. Sperry is a research biologist for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers – Engineers Research and Development Center stationed at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants (UF/IFAS CAIP), where he also holds a courtesy faculty appointment. 

Joao Vendramini

Professor
Forages
RCREC | (863) 735-1314

Dr. Vendramini’s research program focuses on forage management with an emphasis on sub-tropical production systems. He examines the impact of forage management on forage, animal production, and environmental quality. 

Chris Wilson

Assistant Professor
Forages Global Change Agroecologist
(352) 273-2217

Dr. Wilson’s research program focuses is on how to study critical ecosystem processes and properties across management-relevant spatial and temporal scales using a combination of small-scale plot experiments, satellite remote sensing data, and hierarchical statistical models.  

Ali Babar

Associate Professor
Plant Breeding & Molecular Genetics
(352) 273-2213

Dr. Babar's research focuses on improving small grain crops like wheat, oats, and triticale through plant breeding to increase crop productivity in stressful environments, especially the hot and humid Southeastern US.

Brett Bultemeier

Extension Assistant Professor
Weed Science & Invasive Plants
(352) 294-6941

Dr. Bultemeier's program focuses on training and certifying licensed pesticide applicators in the state of Florida.

Stephen Enloe

Professor
Weed Science & Invasive Plants
(352) 392-6841

Dr. Enloe’s research focuses on terrestrial and aquatic invasive plant biology, ecology, and management.  

S. Luke Flory

Professor and Associate Chair
Invasion Ecology
(352) 294-1581

Dr. S. Luke Flory is a Professor of Ecology. His research focuses on the mechanisms and impacts of non-native plant invasions with an overarching goal of understanding the long-term consequences of interactions between invasive species and other potential global change drivers such as climate change, fire, and pathogens.

William Hammond

Assistant Professor & Director of Plant Array
Ecophysiologist - Global Change Ecologist

(352) 294-3792

Dr. Hammond's research focuses on plant vascular function, dysfunction, and failure under compound global change threats (especially, drought and heat) across complex plant systems: from fields to forests, agricultural to natural, and from Florida to the world. 

Rosalie Koenig

Instructional Assistant Professor and Administrator
Agronomy and Center for Stress Resilient Agriculture
(352) 273-3495

Dr. Koenig's research focuses on undergraduate teaching, farmer training and pedagogical approaches to enhance active, inquiry-based learning.  

Cleber Lopes de Souza

Assistant Professor
Forage Breeding
(850) 526-1614

Dr. de Souza's research focuses on Forage Breeding and Genetics

Pawel Petelewicz

Assistant Professor
Weed Science
(352) 392-7512

Dr. Petelewicz’s  research  program focuses on weed management in various turfgrass settings.  His program strives to provide the turfgrass industry with a reliable knowledge based on research that addresses current and relevant weed challenges. 

Hardev Sandhu

Associate Professor
Crop Physiology & Crop Management
(561) 993-1567

Dr. Sandu’s research focuses on sugarcane cultivar development and management with a major focus on evaluation of new sugarcane clones for agronomic performance and disease resistance in on-farm multilocation trials. 

Sudeep Singh Sidhu

Assistant Professor
Agronomy 
(386) 219-4265

Dr. Sidhu’s research and extension focuses on site-specific nutrient, water, and cultivation practices for conventional and integrated crop-livestock cropping systems in Florida Panhandle and North Central Florida for major row crops such as peanut, cotton, corn, and soybean. Dr. Sidhu’s research also focuses on developing protocols for new fertilizer technologies and soil amendments for improving nutrient and water use efficiency for these crops.

Lynn Sollenberger

Distinguished Professor 
Forage Crops
(352) 273-3420

Dr. Sollenberger’s research focuses on grassland management and ecology, germplasm evaluation, and ecosystem services of grassland and legumes mixtures as a strategy for increasing delivery of ecosystem services and mitigating climate change. 

Marcelo Wallau

Associate Professor
Forages
(352) 273-2216

Dr. Wallau’s research program focuses on forage production systems for livestock and wildlife, and on integrated crop-livestock systems. He identifies sustainable practices that farmers can implement to improve livestock production and agroecosystems in Florida and globally.  

Chang Zhao 

Assistant Professor 
Ecosystem Services Artificial Intelligence (AI)
(352) 294-0994

Dr. Zhao's research interests include Geographic Information Science, Remote Sensing, Geovisualization, Ecosystem Service Assessments, and AI (Machine Learning and Deep Learning).

Ednaldo Borgato

Michael G. Burton

Professor and Center Director
Weed Ecology & Resilient Inter-Cropping Systems
(239) 685-3413

Dr. Burton directs the Southwest Florida Research and Education Center (SWFREC) in Immokalee.

James Estrada

Instructional Assistant Professor 
Plant Science & Graduate Training Skills
(352) 294-1588

Dr. Estrada focuses on Instruction and curriculum development for graduate and undergraduate courses supported by the Agronomy Department and the Center for Stress Resilient Agriculture.

Lyn Gettys

Associate Professor
Weed Science & Invasive Plants
(954) 577-6331

Dr. Gettys' research focuses on the biology, identification and control of invasive aquatic weeds, culture and production of desirable native aquatic and wetland plants, and improvement of aquatic and wetland restoration techniques.

Diego Jarquin

Assistant Professor
Integration & Application of AI & Omics in Plant Breeding
(352) 392-1811

Dr. Jarquin is an Assistant Professor in Integration and Application of Artificial Intelligence and Omics in Plant Breeding.

H. Dail Laughinghouse IV

Associate Professor
Phycology
(954) 577-6382

Dr. Laughinghouse's research focuses on diversity and toxicity of cyanobacteria, environmental influences on macroalgae and microbial photoautotrophs, novel applied uses for algae, bioremediation, and the detection and effects of bioactive compounds.  

Greg MacDonald

Professor and Undergraduate Coordinator
Weed Science & Invasive Plants
(352) 294-1594

Dr. MacDonald’s research program focuses on invasive species management, especially perennial grasses, and the physiological and biochemical aspects of herbicides. 

Kara Riggs

Instructional Assistant Professor 
Plant Ecology & Genetics Teaching
(352) 273-2215

Dr. Riggs is a plant physiologist who equips undergraduate and graduate students for jobs in the interdisciplinary global food system.

Edzard van Santen

Professor
Biostatistics & Teaching
(352) 392-3067

Dr. Van Zanten provides statistical support services for the IFAS community through client-centered consulting, research project collaboration, and graduate student training. He specializes in plant breeding and genetics.  

Hardeep Singh

Assistant Professor
Cropping System Specialist
(850) 983- 7128

Dr. Singh’s research focuses on utilizing a systems approach to enhance and evaluate the sustainability, profitability, and delivery of ecosystem services of traditional agriculture (row crops) and emerging cropping systems.   

Barry Tillman

Professor
Plant Breeding & Molecular Genetics
(850) 394-9124

Dr. Tillman's peanut breeding research program focuses on developing improved peanut cultivars that are resistant to key diseases and have excellent pod yield, germination, and kernel grade as well as appropriate seed size.

Jianping Wang

Professor
Plant Breeding & Molecular Genetics
(352) 392-1811

Dr. Wang is a plant geneticist and her research focuses on understanding the molecular and genetic mechanisms of important traits of crops by using integrated approaches combining genetics, molecular biology, genomics, bioinformatics and molecular breeding.