University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) colleagues have acknowledged Lukas Hallman for his distinguished achievements and contributions as a graduate student. Hallman completed master’s and doctoral degrees in horticultural sciences in the last six years as a UF/IFAS graduate research assistant. He worked in Associate Professor Lorenzo Rossi’s Plant Root Biology Laboratory at the Indian River Research and Education Center (IRREC).
“He published 10 peer-reviewed journal articles in some of the world’s most prestigious scientific publications,” noted Rossi.
Hallman’s doctoral research involved cover crops in citrus production. His dissertation examined the resurgence of cover crops to improve fertility of Florida’s sandy, low-nutrient soils. Part of the dissertation, Use of Cover Crops in Florida’s Citrus Industry: History and Resurgence, Current Practices, Challenges, and Opportunities, has been published in HortTechnology. Rossi said the work points to further research needs.
Hallman was able to see all of America’s citrus production regions on UF/IFAS field trips.
He shipped excavated grapefruit trunks ahead of his visit to Zürich, Switzerland, where he studied under world-renowned tree ring expert Paolo Cherubini. During the two-month internship, Hallman examined the grapefruit wood samples to identify changes in the tree’s rings when the trees became infected with HLB.
Hallman credits Rossi for his many awards and achievements. Rossi applied for and successfully received a UF/IFAS College of Agricultural and Life Sciences Deans Award that provided full funding for Hallman’s degrees. Rossi mentored Hallman for a successful U.S. Department of Agriculture Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education grant. According to Rossi, not many graduate students apply for or receive grants from prestigious institutions and federal agencies for their graduate work.
And then came the coveted awards: the American Society for Horticultural Science Outstanding Graduate Horticulture Student Award and membership in Sigma Xi, a prestigious international society for scientists.
“Dr. Hallman carries himself and his work like a full-fledged colleague,” said Mark Ritenour, IRREC associate director and professor of horticulture. Ritenour served on Hallman’s Ph.D. committee and evaluated his work.
Those who work with Hallman in the laboratory concur with his evolving leadership capabilities. “In the opportunities I have had to work with Lukas, he always maintains composure, and he figures out what the best solution is and proceeds in a logical manner,” said Joseph Paoli, who began work in the Rossi laboratory as an intern and is now pursuing a master’s degree.
Source: UF/IFAS
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