Projects
Below is a compilation of some of the projects I have completed over the course of my academic journey. Click on the title to open the project in a new window.
Hort 319 Fruit and Nut Production
In this project I co-planned the establishment and management of a plum orchard, including choice of site, location, soil amendments, irrigation, tree spacing, fruit species, cultivar selections, IPM practices, and monetization of mature produce.
​
Project guidelines: Develop a comprehensive to establish a fruit/nut production operation entailing the planning, establishment, and management of a practical temperate fruit or nut orchard or vineyard.
​
Takeaways: You cannot pump water from a public stream without a permit. The most important part of managing an orchard is creating the management plan. A strong foundation makes everything else easier.
AGLS 489 Food Justice
During this project I collaborated with a team of three students to research, design, and present a proposal on reclaiming vacant land in New Brunswick, New Jersey.
Project guidelines: Create a plan that addresses food insecurity issues in New Brunswick, New Jersey answering the following questions:​
-
What do you think are the most relevant and pressing food justice challenges in the focal community and why?​
-
How is the focal community addressing these food justice issues at present?​
-
How might students like you support the focal community in addressing these food justice issues?
​​
Takeaways:​ There's more to accessibility than money but it's often the limiting factor. It's important to communicate with the local population when designing an improvement plan, their lived experience will always be more important than any personal ideas on what can help improve a situation. Listening is key.
Rwfm 313 Vegetative sampling and design methods
In this monitoring plan I created, implemented, summarized, and presented a monitoring plan comparing trees/shrubs in two plots of land. See the presentation here.
​
Project guidelines: Create, implement, summarize, and present a monitoring plan comparing attributes of two or more vegetation species, and decide which is better for a certain utilization. Outline the study area where the monitoring has been taken, describe the sampling techniques you to collect data, state the results of surveying and analysis, and describe if the findings either support the management objectives or if the monitoring strategy needs to change.
​
Takeaways:​ It's always best to sample more than once and using a random number generator helps eliminate sampling biases. I've certainly gotten better at compiling data and running T tests, two skills that will be useful in graduate school.
Anth 437 Ethnobotany
As a creative project for my Ethnobotany course, I made a small booklet of recipes containing common tonics, salves, tinctures, and poultices through the ages for the herb Goldenseal (Hydrastis canadensis) with accompanying illustrations of the disease/illness they were meant to treat and any record of effectiveness. The was the visual component to my five page research paper tracking how the cultivation and harvesting of goldenseal changed throughout the ages.
​
Project guidelines: Create a piece with an ethnobotanical theme that explores any of
the topics taught in class or beyond related to ethnobotany, such as the relationship between Western and indigenous knowledge production, intellectual property, the efficacy of medicinal plants, techniques for collecting and identifying plants, etc.
​
Takeaways: Creating a magazine is balancing the pictures and words. Less is more and there's a what works on a website doesn't always work in person. I've have gotten better at balancing color, word count and content for editorial work and look forward to the being able to apply these newfound skills in the future.
Podcast
UGST 497 Capstone Performance
A podcast about Horticulture, how it's changed and my thoughts on the industry.
​
Project guidelines: Explore the impact of Horticulture on my academic career and create a project that unites Horticulture and educational experience.
​
Takeaways:​ There's a lot that goes into planning, writing, recording and fact checking the script for a podcast. My editing skills have improved and I've made some industry connections that have offered perspective and insight about horticulture that I hadn't considered before.