Team

Iraj Yaghoubian, Ph.D Student (2024-)

M.Sc, Agronomy, University of Tabriz.

Iraj comes from the University of Tabriz with lots of experience in plant science and agronomy. He has been a member of the lab since September 2024. He has decided to investigate the agronomy and crop physiology of field crops, including managing crop residue challenges and optimizing crop production under minimal-till/no-till cropping systems in Ontario. 

Jongwon Kang, Ph.D Student (2022-)

M.Sc, Plant Breeding, Chungbuk National University, South Korea (2021). Advisor: Dr. Yoon-Sup So.

Jongwon’s Ph.D research is focused on corn physiology and agronomy. His research includes: using the DNDC biogeochemical model to analyze the effect of nitrogen application timing on N2O emissions, improving corn phenology predictions by incorporating solar radiation into traditional GDD models, analyzing weather/soil/crop datasets to understand what conditions are conducive to late nitrogen applications in corn.

Gavin Brady, M.Sc Student (2022-)

Co-supervised with Dr. John Lauzon

B.Sc.Agr, University of Guelph (2022)

My research currently focuses on gaining better understanding of the effects of drought upon corn nitrogen uptake and metabolism. Furthermore, the impacts of differing N sources, timings, application methods, and rates are also being analyzed. The aim of this research is to contribute towards an updated best nitrogen management plan.

Lance Javier, MSc Student (2023- present)

I am researching the underlying causes of poor stand establishment and reduced yield observed in cropping systems with higher levels of surface residue, such as no-tillage or cover-cropped systems. There is a heavy emphasis on seedbed quality indicators (e.g., residue level, soil structure), and how these might affect germination and emergence patterns in corn and soybean across on-farm research trials in Eastern Ontario. My goal is to promote the adoption of soil health building practices like no-tillage and cover cropping by equipping farmers with actionable insights to address stand establishment issues on their farms. 

Seth Ristma, M.Sc student (2022-present)

Co-supervised with Dr. David Hooker

I’m currently working on a planting date project that looks at 12 and 10 different hybrids/varieties of corn and soybean planted in April, May, and June to analyze the interaction between planting date and crop maturity, along with soybean seeding rate. The goal is to create
profitable, data-backed Ontario-specific recommendations for farmers to use in order to improve early/late planting decisions, along with investigating the plant-to-plant variability in corn across
different maturity selection and planting date

Placeholder, Honor’s Undergrad Project (2024-present)

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