The Horticulture and Landscape Architecture Graduate Student Association hosted their annual Research and Design Retreat on May 15 at the John S. Wright Forestry Center. The event provided a platform for graduate students to present their research to peers, faculty, and staff, while also welcoming visiting scholars and undergraduate researchers to share their work.
The day featured competitive poster and oral presentations, with winners receiving valuable travel grants. In addition, participants engaged in an interactive workshop led by Anette Benson and Kelsey Patton from the Center for Intercultural Learning, Mentorship, Assessment and Research (CILMAR), followed by afternoon team-bonding activities.
Competition Winners
Undergraduate Poster Presentation
- First Place: Ash Hallissey (Widhalm Lab): Answering Biological Questions with Alkylation Potential of 1,4-Naphthoquinones
- Second place: Maria Fernanda Moreno de la Espriella (Hoagland Lab): Multispectral Analysis of Botrytis cinerea and Passalora fulva Infections in Tomato Using a Low-Cost Multispectral Camera and the Plant Explorer Pro System
Masters Oral Presentations
- First Place: Celia Corado (Meyers Lab): Exploring the Potential of Black Soldier Fly Compost Tea for Weed Seed Suppression
- Second Place: Jose Cabezas (Bilenky Lab): Low Salmonella spp. Prevalence in Organic Cover Crop-Pastured Chicken-Tomato Rotations with No Significant Differences Among Management Practices
Master Poster Presentations
- First Place: Grace Lentz (Thompson Lab): Navigating Conservation Planning through Social and Ecological Structures in Northwest Indiana
- Second Place: Helen Nocito (Meyers Lab): Herbicide Impregnated Fertilizer for Increased Pumpkin Crop Safety
PhD Oral Presentations
- First Place: Jeanine Arana (Meyers Lab): Effects of Plastic Mulch Color and Cultivar Selection on Strawberry Production in Indiana
- Second Place: Freddie Mildenhall (Varala Lab): Cold Stress Induced Circadian Clock Disruption in Tomato Reveals Divergence Between Tropical and Temperate Origin Species
PhD Poster Presentations
- First Place: Leo Koenigsfeld (Li Lab): Determining the Role of RNA Directed DNA Methylation in the Nitrogen Response of Arabidopsis thaliana
- Second Place: Mingyu Zhao (Thompson Lab): Exploring the dose-response of landscape preference: A case study in Singapore
Departmental Awards
The retreat also served as a platform to announce departmental-level Graduate Awards, recognizing outstanding contributions nominated by faculty and staff:
- Outstanding Research Award: Josué Cerritos
- Outstanding Extension Award: Jean-Pierre Zavala
- Outstanding Teaching Award: Ishraq Awashra
Special thanks to the organizing committee—Vera Vukovic, Jose Cabezas, Celia Corado, Josué Cerritos, Khadija Mbacke, and Kayla Quintero—for coordinating the successful event. The department also extends gratitude to Wild Birds Unlimited for their financial support and to Kristina Cooley for administrative assistance.
Photos from the event are available in the gallery.