Academic focus: Grapevine breeding, genetics and genomics
Research summary: My research focuses on the genetic understanding and improvement of grapes, with an emphasis on fruit quality, environmental resilience and biotic resistance. We also work on developing and integrating modern phenotyping, genotyping and selection technologies to improve research and breeding efficiency. Our goal is to develop and release novel, resilient and high-quality grape varieties. While we mainly focus on wine grapes, we also study and develop novel table and juice grapes.
What do you like to do when you’re not working?
While not working, I spend most of my time trying to keep up with my toddler, Ava! Our family enjoys spending lots of time outside and on our trails with our dogs, Ella and Annabelle, and our horses, Roo and Nona. Or curled up in front of the wood stove with our cats, Tucker and Otis.
What are your current outreach/extension projects?
My goal is to develop and release novel and resilient varieties to improve the sustainability and profitability of the wine and grape industry. Engaging directly with the industry and stakeholder community is vital to the success of my breeding and extension program. I am developing a survey to assess the priorities and needs of growers and winemakers across New York.
What are three adjectives people might use to describe you?
Cheerful, compassionate, enthusiastic
What (specifically) brought you to Cornell CALS?
I appreciate the passion of the research community, the extensive interdisciplinary collaborations and the incredible resources here at Cornell. I was also excited to see and experience the direct collaborations between stakeholders/industry and researchers in CALS. Plus, I’m a proud Cornellian and past CALS ambassador – I’m thrilled to be back at my alma mater!
What do you think is important for people to understand about your field?
Each new fruit or vegetable variety on the market is the result of a huge amount of work, time, data and thought. Horticultural plant breeding today relies on human experience and evaluations, as well as a large sets of technical and genomic data to aid in the decision-making for selecting the next best new variety.
Why did you feel inspired to pursue a career in this field?
Good food and good wine: What is not to love? There is something so motivating about creating brand new varieties, supporting a vibrant industry and delivering a new experience to consumers. These new varieties are key to the continued supply of quality foods and wines in our changing climate.
If you could relate your work to one of the four transdisciplinary moonshots, which one would you most closely align with and why? They are: Redesigning 21st Century Agri-Food Systems; Accelerating Holistic Climate Solutions; Leading in Synthetic Biology; and Pioneering Life Science Breakthroughs.
My program aligns most closely with Redesigning 21st Century Agri-Food Systems. We strive to change the landscape of grape varieties that are being produced in our region, state and around the country and world – to require less pesticide sprays, be more well-adapted in our changing climate, improve productivity, and deliver high-quality, delicious and nutritionally-valuable products.
