The USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) recently awarded Aniruddha Maity a $300,000 grant to….
![Maity awarded $300,000 in support of plant research and agricultural production systems](https://agriculture.auburn.edu/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Aniruddha-Maity-1080x675.png)
The USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) recently awarded Aniruddha Maity a $300,000 grant to….
College of Agriculture student Chera Howard placed second in a competition that started with 21 student-led business startups competing for $80,000 in seed funding. The 2024 Tiger Cage Business Pitch Competition concluded on March 29 when the six teams who advanced to...
Mizumoto recreates fossilization process to test tandem run hypothesis An assistant professor in the Auburn University Department of Entomology & Plant Pathology recently found evidence that termites living millions of years ago mated the same way termites do...
For researchers studying environmentally friendly farming practices, biochar is a game-changer.
Biochar, a charcoal-like substance created by heating plant waste, is a groundbreaking innovation in the field of sustainable farming. It is beneficial for improving soil quality, recycling organic plant material and capturing greenhouse gas emissions from the agricultural industry.
Auburn University’s Center for Bioenergy and Bioproducts (CBB) is on the cutting edge of rapidly advancing research surrounding biochar and its uses. Sushil Adhikari, the center’s director, is excited about the direction of biochar research at Auburn.
“We are exploring the possibilities of biochar that can be produced from locally available biomass,” Adhikari said. “We are looking at the potential for capturing nutrients and reusing them, reducing greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture practices to make farming more sustainable, capturing carbon dioxide and sequestering in the form of stable carbon and potentially generating revenue for farmers to store carbon for large carbon dioxide emitters.”
At the CBB, faculty members from several disciplines, including those in the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering and Auburn’s College of Agriculture, are conducting research surrounding the production and use of biochar. They are currently working on several different projects that explore how this naturally derived substance can make farming more sustainable.
Title: “Developing effective adaptation strategies to enhance the resilience of farmers under changing climate”
Principal investigator: Jasmeet Lamba of Biosystems Engineering
Also involved: Adhikari, William Batchelor and Hossein Jahromi of Biosystems Engineering; Charles Chen of Crop, Soil & Environmental Sciences; Neha Potnis of Entomology and Plant Pathology; and Wendiam Sawadgo from the Department of Agricultural Economics & Rural Sociology. The CBB helped to assemble the team and contribute technical information to the research.
These researchers received a $6 million grant from the National Science Foundation to study how farmers can use biochar to minimize the effects of drought while at the same time reducing agricultural greenhouse gas emissions. They are also studying which plant genes are associated with a higher crop yield when treated with biochar and assessing farmers’ attitudes toward using this new product.
Title: “Tripartite: Dual-Function Engineered Biochar for Excess Soil Phosphorus Sorption with Subsequent Slow Release for Cost-Effective and Sustainable Crop Production”
Principal Investigator: Adhikari
Also involved: Sawadgo, Jahromi, colleagues in Ireland and Northern Ireland and faculty from the University of Delaware and New Mexico State University.
Adhikari and his colleagues are part of a $1 million grant from the United States Department of Agriculture to study how to capture excess phosphorus in the soil and slowly release it to benefit plant growth. In areas near chicken farms, including those in Alabama, there are often large buildups of phosphorus from synthetic fertilizers. When phosphorus runoff enters streams and creeks, it can deplete the oxygen supply, creating “dead zones” that harm marine and plant life and disrupt the aquatic ecosystem. The team’s goals are to learn how to keep those carbon emissions out of waterways and to divert that carbon to plants at a rate that will help them grow.
Auburn University’s only farmers’ market returns to campus on Thursday, May 23…
Longtime Auburn University Professor Beth Guertal has joined the ranks of Thomas Edison, W.E.B. Dubois and Margaret Mead with her election as a fellow to the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).
An endowed professor in the Auburn University College of Agriculture is listed as among the world’s top 2% of entomologists in a database announced recently by Stanford University. “This recognition is a testimony to the impact our research has had on the broader...
Paul Patterson received the Southern Agricultural Economics Association Lifetime Achievement Award at its annual meeting in early February. Patterson is dean of the Auburn University College of Agriculture and director of the Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station....
Auburn University has named Govind Kannan as its head for the Department of Poultry Science and director of the Charles C. Miller Poultry Research and Education Center, effective June 1. Kannan currently serves as Fort Valley State University’s vice president for...
Auburn University has awarded Daniel Wells, associate professor of horticulture, with its Elbert A. and Barbara L. Botts Endowed Professorship, effective this month. The appointment is for 33 months, January 2024-September 2026. Wells has served at Auburn since 2014,...
Opportunities available for research addressing water resources problems in Alabama The Alabama Water Resources Research Institute (AWRRI) invites faculty members and affiliates from any Alabama-based university or college to submit proposals for research addressing...
New Professor of Practice for Youth Livestock Programs started June 2023 Sarah-Jane French is someone who believes everything happens for a reason. A new faculty member in the Department of Animal Science within the Auburn University College of Agriculture, she...
“Human” episode airing Saturday to feature Penick’s research on urban ants An episode of Planet Earth III airing in the U.S. this Saturday, Dec. 16, was made possible with the help of Assistant Professor Clint Penick in the Department of Entomology and Plant...
By Mike Jernigan Imagine, if you will, the mental stress and intensity of a formal student debate, but with cattle, pigs, sheep and goats both as the audience and the topic of discussion. Sound like a chapter from George Orwell’s Animal Farm? It’s not. Instead,...
By Taylor Edwards and Kristen Bowman What do you get when you combine horticulture and artistry? Take a stroll through the 4,400-square-foot garden atop the Tony and Libba Rane Culinary Science Center, and you have your answer. Two particularly special minds are...
“Agricultural experiments will be carried on in connection with the college farm and garden to such an extent as may be necessary for the requirement of instruction, and the means at command.” -Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical College Catalog 1872-73 The founders...
The fall 2023 graduation marshal for the Auburn University College of Agriculture is a Montevallo, Alabama, native with goals to head an agricultural publication one day. Taylor Edwards will receive a Bachelor of Science in agricultural communications and a minor in...
By Mike Jernigan If die-hard Auburn fans truly bleed orange and blue, then few families’ blood likely features more of the Tiger colors than the Brodbeck clan, whose immediate family features seven Auburn graduates. But a blood test would also show another liquid...
The Road Back: Leanne Dillard shares her agriculture story By Justin Miller A desire to work in agriculture is something that many people have from an early age. But the story of Leanne Dillard is quite different. Early in her life, she wanted nothing to do with...
It’s become a bit of a tradition. Each summer, some of the best and brightest students at EARTH University in Costa Rica travel to Auburn to study and conduct research with the Auburn Aquaponics Project at the E.W. Shell Fisheries Center. In 2022, those students were...
A nearly half-a-million-dollar grant will allow Auburn University professors and Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station researchers to help blueberry growers in states like Alabama where growing the fruit has its challenges. Funded by a $497,827 grant from the U.S....
The Auburn University College of Agriculture recently signed an agreement with Wallace Community College-Dothan to provide a streamlined transfer process for Wallace students who meet criteria for bachelor’s degree programs in the College of Agriculture. An official...
Experts in agriculture, the environment and nutrition will address critical topics impacting Alabama communities Thursday, Oct. 26, as part the Alabama Cooperative Extension System’s Extension Week activities. The lecture, “Sustaining Life: Exploring the Future of...
How challenging is it to farm sustainably? The answer is complex. While technological and scientific advancements have improved the resiliency of modern farms, there are challenges that today’s farmers face in adopting conservation practices. Enter the Alabama...
A seasoned academic and agriculturalist will share a land-grant perspective at the E.T. York Distinguished Lecturer Series at 4 p.m. Oct. 4 in the Ralph Brown Draughon Library Mell Classroom Building room 3510. Walter Hill is professor and vice provost at Tuskegee...
By Georgia Smith The 44th annual Ag Roundup, hosted by the Auburn Agricultural Alumni Club and the College of Agriculture at Auburn University, will return to campus on Saturday, Sept. 16, offering a special opportunity for agriculture alumni and friends to gather for...
Andre da Silva, assistant professor and extension vegetable specialist in the Auburn University Department of Horticulture, was recently named the national winner of the 2023 Professional Early Career Award from the American Society for Horticultural Science (ASHS) at...
An endowed professor in the Auburn University College of Agriculture is listed as among the world’s top 2% of entomologists in a database announced recently by Stanford University. “This recognition is a testimony to the impact our research has had on the broader...
Paul Patterson received the Southern Agricultural Economics Association Lifetime Achievement Award at its annual meeting in early February. Patterson is dean of the Auburn University College of Agriculture and director of the Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station....
Auburn University has named Govind Kannan as its head for the Department of Poultry Science and director of the Charles C. Miller Poultry Research and Education Center, effective June 1. Kannan currently serves as Fort Valley State University’s vice president for...
Auburn University has awarded Daniel Wells, associate professor of horticulture, with its Elbert A. and Barbara L. Botts Endowed Professorship, effective this month. The appointment is for 33 months, January 2024-September 2026. Wells has served at Auburn since 2014,...
Opportunities available for research addressing water resources problems in Alabama The Alabama Water Resources Research Institute (AWRRI) invites faculty members and affiliates from any Alabama-based university or college to submit proposals for research addressing...
New Professor of Practice for Youth Livestock Programs started June 2023 Sarah-Jane French is someone who believes everything happens for a reason. A new faculty member in the Department of Animal Science within the Auburn University College of Agriculture, she...
“Human” episode airing Saturday to feature Penick’s research on urban ants An episode of Planet Earth III airing in the U.S. this Saturday, Dec. 16, was made possible with the help of Assistant Professor Clint Penick in the Department of Entomology and Plant...
By Mike Jernigan Imagine, if you will, the mental stress and intensity of a formal student debate, but with cattle, pigs, sheep and goats both as the audience and the topic of discussion. Sound like a chapter from George Orwell’s Animal Farm? It’s not. Instead,...
By Taylor Edwards and Kristen Bowman What do you get when you combine horticulture and artistry? Take a stroll through the 4,400-square-foot garden atop the Tony and Libba Rane Culinary Science Center, and you have your answer. Two particularly special minds are...
“Agricultural experiments will be carried on in connection with the college farm and garden to such an extent as may be necessary for the requirement of instruction, and the means at command.” -Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical College Catalog 1872-73 The founders...
The fall 2023 graduation marshal for the Auburn University College of Agriculture is a Montevallo, Alabama, native with goals to head an agricultural publication one day. Taylor Edwards will receive a Bachelor of Science in agricultural communications and a minor in...
By Mike Jernigan If die-hard Auburn fans truly bleed orange and blue, then few families’ blood likely features more of the Tiger colors than the Brodbeck clan, whose immediate family features seven Auburn graduates. But a blood test would also show another liquid...
The Road Back: Leanne Dillard shares her agriculture story By Justin Miller A desire to work in agriculture is something that many people have from an early age. But the story of Leanne Dillard is quite different. Early in her life, she wanted nothing to do with...
It’s become a bit of a tradition. Each summer, some of the best and brightest students at EARTH University in Costa Rica travel to Auburn to study and conduct research with the Auburn Aquaponics Project at the E.W. Shell Fisheries Center. In 2022, those students were...
A nearly half-a-million-dollar grant will allow Auburn University professors and Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station researchers to help blueberry growers in states like Alabama where growing the fruit has its challenges. Funded by a $497,827 grant from the U.S....
The Auburn University College of Agriculture recently signed an agreement with Wallace Community College-Dothan to provide a streamlined transfer process for Wallace students who meet criteria for bachelor’s degree programs in the College of Agriculture. An official...
Experts in agriculture, the environment and nutrition will address critical topics impacting Alabama communities Thursday, Oct. 26, as part the Alabama Cooperative Extension System’s Extension Week activities. The lecture, “Sustaining Life: Exploring the Future of...
How challenging is it to farm sustainably? The answer is complex. While technological and scientific advancements have improved the resiliency of modern farms, there are challenges that today’s farmers face in adopting conservation practices. Enter the Alabama...
A seasoned academic and agriculturalist will share a land-grant perspective at the E.T. York Distinguished Lecturer Series at 4 p.m. Oct. 4 in the Ralph Brown Draughon Library Mell Classroom Building room 3510. Walter Hill is professor and vice provost at Tuskegee...
By Georgia Smith The 44th annual Ag Roundup, hosted by the Auburn Agricultural Alumni Club and the College of Agriculture at Auburn University, will return to campus on Saturday, Sept. 16, offering a special opportunity for agriculture alumni and friends to gather for...
Andre da Silva, assistant professor and extension vegetable specialist in the Auburn University Department of Horticulture, was recently named the national winner of the 2023 Professional Early Career Award from the American Society for Horticultural Science (ASHS) at...