LSU Wheat Research Team

This research wouldn't be possible without the concerted work of many individuals.

SHarrison@agcenter.lsu.edu Steve Harrison is a professor in the School of Plant, Environmental and Soil Sciences based in Baton Rouge. He has been the LSU AgCenter wheat and oat breeder since 1984 and also coordinates the statewide wheat and oat variety testing activities. He teaches several plant breeding courses and has an appointment that is 95% research and 5% teaching.

The LSUAC wheat and oat breeding program has released a number of widely grown wheat and oat varieties for Gulf Coast region. The wheat breeding program emphasizes high yield, grain quality, and resistance to disease and insect pest, along with specific adaptation to climatic conditions of the region. The primary breeding sites are at the Ben Hur Research Station in Baton Rouge and at the Macon Ridge Research Station in Winnsboro, LA.

Steve coordinates the SunGrains (Southeastern University Grains) collaborative small grain breeding program that includes breeding programs from the University of Florida, University of Georgia, North Carolina State University, University of Arkansas, Louisiana State University AgCenter, and the soft wheat and oat breeding programs of Texas A&M University. Steve also coordinates the Quaker International Oat Nursery that serves as a germplasm exchange system among breeders worldwide.

KArceneaux@agcenter.lsu.edu Kelly is the lab's senior Research Associate. He is also working on his Doctorate, researching oat traits, including forage utility, using an association panel.

SAbernathy@agcenter.lsu.edu Steven is a Graduate Assistant working on his Doctorate. He is working on a deer grazing preference trial using an oat association panel.

BPadgett@agcenter.lsu.edu Dr. Padgett is a field crops pathologist and regional director assisting in the wheat and oat program in the central region of the state.

PPrice@agcenter.lsu.edu Trey Price is an Assistant Professor at the Macon Ridge Research Station in Winnsboro, Louisiana. He has an Extension (70%) and Research (30%) appointment and conducts basic and applied research in corn, cotton, grain sorghum, oats, rice, soybean, and wheat in the central and northeast regions of Louisiana. Dr. Price has statewide responsibility in cotton pathology and disease management education. He provides immediate assistance to stakeholders statewide via laboratory diagnostics, field calls, phone calls, text messages, and other means. Trey is also responsible for evaluating disease in multiple variety trials in multiple crops at multiple research stations in the state. A portion of his current research program is dedicated to discovery and definition of fungicide resistance in major row crop pathogens and defining the effects of fungicides on crop plants in the presence and absence of disease.

Specifically, in the LSU wheat program, Dr. Price produces scab inoculum for three nurseries in Louisiana. He is responsible for rating diseases in official variety trials at the Macon Ridge and Northeast research stations and assists with ratings in Dr. Harrison’s nurseries. Dr. Price conducts multiple field research trials in multiple locations that are geared towards seed treatment and/or foliar fungicide efficacy.

DKerns@agcenter.lsu.edu Dr. Kerns is a field crops entomologist at the Macon Ridge Research Station.

DGroth@agcenter.lsu.edu Dr. Groth is a rice and field crops pathologist at the Rice Research Station.