New cropping systems agronomist hired by AgriLife Research in Vernon
Dr. Curtis Adams has been hired by Texas A&M AgriLife Research as the cropping systems agronomist in Vernon. He will also have an assistant professor position in the Texas A&M University department of soil and crop sciences.
"Dr. Adams certainly has the academic training and research experience we were looking for as cropping systems agronomist in the Rolling Plains," said Dr. John Sweeten, AgriLife Research director for Vernon.
"He also comes from a family farm and cattle ranching background in southern Utah, which can really help bridge research gaps between integrated crops and livestock systems in water-limited situations such as the Texas Rolling Plains."
Adams has a background in whole-plant physiology and crop ecology. His primary research interests are plant nutrition, enhancing ecosystem services, plant-environment interactions, water-use efficiency, biofuels and agricultural systems research.
He earned his bachelor's degree in crop science, his master's degree in plant sciences and his doctorate in crop physiology, all from Utah State University.
Adams conducted his postdoctoral research at the University of Florida on sweet and grain sorghum, concentrating on the effects of root system architecture – the placement and structure of the roots underground – on nitrogen and water-use efficiency and crop resiliency. He also studied the culture of sweet sorghum as a biofuel feedstock.
As a doctoral candidate, Adams researched the physiological and cultural aspects of algae for biofuel production. The focus of his work was on understanding nutrient deprivation and lipid production trade-offs in algae and implementing improved cultural management at scale.
His master's degree was funded by NASA to improve nutrient management for plant growth on the International Space Station. Adams said this involved mechanistic and empirical work to better understand the nutrient-release characteristics of polymer-coated fertilizers and work on an aggregated clay plant-growth medium.
Adams said he looks forward to using his research experiences in a variety of projects to address issues in the Rolling Plains.
"Most of my research experience has involved gaining better understanding of how parts of systems or entire systems function and applying that understanding to make improvements. I'm excited to apply that approach to existing and new cropping systems here in Texas.
"Also, I want to continue my work on root system architecture, to provide a better scientific understanding of the potential that optimizing architecture may have in improving crop efficiency and resiliency."
Adams said he has a strong interest in future research on biofuel crops, specifically agronomic and ecological aspects of their culture in the short- and long-term.
Provided by Texas A&M University