Department of Plant and Agroecosystem Sciences

Text reads, "Fall 2026. RELS slash ILS slash AGREOCOL 304. Plants and Religion. Tuesdays and Thursdays, 11 AM. Doctor Reba Luiken. Intermediate, Humanities, 3 Credits."

We are so excited to share our new course offering, Plants & Religion!

This fall, join Dr. Reba Luiken, director of Allen Centennial Garden, to learn about the ways plants are used and understood in religions around the world, and how this influences art, literature, gardens, and more!

Two rows of people smile and pose for a picture in a field.

Congrats to Irwin Goldman and the Goldman Lab! This July, Irwin Goldman began his role as the first Wisconsin Potato and Vegetable Grower KWS Chair. This program was created by the Wisconsin Potato and Vegetable Growers Association (WPVGA).

Learn more: pasdept.wisc.edu/2025/12/17/i...

The headline reads ‘Black Love: Rooted, Radiant, Revolutionary.’ A large heart is filled with colorful candy hearts labeled with words like joy, empowerment, family, self-love, unity, honor, and bond. The date ‘February 2026’ appears below, along with Black History Month and Black Cultural Center logos.

Join UW-Madison and organizations across campus to celebrate Black History Month! The 2026 Black History Month Planning Committee has organized a series of events from pilates classes to guest speakers to video game nights. Learn more at: go.wisc.edu/bhm

Rajdeep Khangura smiles and wears a forest green button up. Text reads, "New faculty Rajdeep Khangura."

This summer, Rajdeep Khangura joined our department as an assistant professor specializing in cereal crop genetics. Learn more about Khangura's education, research, and experiences in this recent Q&A: ecals.cals.wisc.edu/2025/11/19/n...

Photos of two women with gray backgrounds.

Celebrating our hardworking instrumentation engineers today, who both received professional development grants from @uwmadison.bsky.social.

The grants will fund their attendance at the @ametsoc.org annual meeting, where they will present work about Wisconet.

Three people pose for a picture. One holds an award.

Congrats to Héctor Lopez Moreno, a graduate student in plant breeding and plant genetics, for being inducted into the Bouchet Graduate Honor Society!

Read more about Héctor and this prestigious award at: grad.wisc.edu/2025/12/02/f...

Photo by Todd Brown/UW-Madison Media Solutions

Wisconet (@wisconet.bsky.social) is a powerful tool used by growers, scientists, and weather reporters across Wisconsin. Its reports are free and open to the public, providing essential data for users across the state.

Learn more about this tool and how you can access it below:

Five people pose for a picture and hold an award.

Congrats to the UW-Madison Crops Judging team! The team recently traveled to Salt Lake City for the 2025 SASES Crops Judging Competition. They won 2nd place overall, and team member Brandon Boyd placed 5th individual overall.

Congrats, team!

Lessons from the river: Carrying forward the teachings of my ancestors Written by Tanikwah Lang My fingers sting from the cold as I hold them over the fire, the warmth rushing back too quickly as the sun begins to wash away...

Tanikwah Lang is a Citizen of The Klamath Tribes of southern Oregon and an agroecology MS student researching how tribal led forest management techniques influence wild blueberry growth. This fall, Lang attended FAO forums in Rome, Italy. Read Lang's experience: www.fao.org/voluntary-gu...

Sarah Kezar smiles. She has light brown hair and wears a striped button up. Text reads, "New faculty Sarah Kezar."

We are excited to announce our new faculty Sarah Kezar! Kezar joins us as an assistant professor specializing in weed ecology and management.

Read more about Kezar's research goals, academic journey, hobbies (such as barrel racing 🐎), and more in a recent Q&A: ecals.cals.wisc.edu/2025/10/30/n...

How can short-stature corn hybrids change the game for alfalfa interseeding? Visit this #CANVAS25 poster to see how canopy light capture & competition shape yield and persistence in mixed forage systems. @asa-cssa-sssa.bsky.social @uwmadisonpas.bsky.social
#ForageSystems #CropScience #Plantscience

Text says, "Agroecology 377 Global Food Production and Health. Study: agricultural and environmental health, food sovereignty, global health and nutrition, and policy and governance. Instructor Claudia Irene Calderon. Three credits. Biological Breadth."

Study environmental health, food sovereignty, global food systems, and more this spring in Global Food Production and Health (Agroecology 377)!

Instructor: Claudia Irene Calderón
Credits: 3
Breadth: Biological Science

Text reads, "Plant Science 360. Spring 2025. Genetically Modified Crops: Science, Regulation, and Controversy. Explore how and why genetically modified crops are created and regulated. Learn about the impacts of genetically modified crops and evaluate arguments both for and against their use. Mondays and Wednesdays 1:20 PM to 2:10 PM. 351 Moore Hall. 2 credits." In the middle is a picture of a map of genetically modified crops grown around the world.

Looking at spring courses? Check out Genetically Modified Crops: Science, Regulation, and Controversy! Students will learn about why GM crops are created, how they are regulated, and arguments for and against their use.

*Map from GE Crops: Experiences & Prospects (2016) National Academies Press

Text says, "NDiSTEM Conference. Columbus, Ohio. October 30 through November 1. Visit our booth number 423 to speak with Fernando De La Torre about our graduate programs in plant science and technology, plant breeding and plant genetics, and agroecology." At the bottom is the SACNAS logo.

Are you headed to the SACNAS NDiSTEM conference? If so, make sure to stop by booth (number 423) where our very own Fernando De La Torre will be sharing information about our graduate programs in plant breeding & plant genetics, plant science & technology, and agroecology!

A person stands behind a table and smiles in the Discovery Center.

Two people wearing matching shirts stand behind a table and smile.

Students from across the state visited us for the Wisconsin Science Festival's Field Trip Day in the Discovery Building on Oct 22nd. Volunteers and department members shared fun activities like trivia, crop tasting, and even a potato race with kids aged K-12!

Text reads, "Plant Science 380. Indigenous Foodways: Food and Seed Sovereignty. Tuesdays 3:30 to 5:25 Room 108. Plant Science Building 2 credits."

Images of corn, boiled corn, a corn grinder, and tortillas. Text reads, "Students study nixtamalization by boiling corn and ash, grinding the corn, and making flour."

A person on a ladder works on a wooden framework. Text reads, "Co-instructor Dan Cornelius teaches students how to construct a temporary lodge."

A hole is cut in ice and a fish swims. Text reads, "In a tent on Lake Mendota, guest lecturer Jon Greendeer, a tribal member and former president of the Ho-Chunk Nation, demonstrates traditional spearfishing practices to students."

Looking for spring courses? Check out Indigenous Foodways: Food and Seed Sovereignty! #Indigenous foods of North America are a vital part of modern agricultural & food systems. Indigenous foods and foodways will be examined from interdisciplinary historical, legal, biological, & social perspectives.

Weather map from Fox 6 in Milwaukee showing Wisconet data.

Oh hey - this is great to see! Fox 6 in Milwaukee has integrated our data into their graphics software to give the latest Wisconet data in their weathercasts.

A traditional Ojibwe birchbark canoe lies in the grass.

A horticulture student smiles and stands next to their presentation on the Wyman Kitchen Garden.

Two people serve collard greens as a line of people queue for samples.

A Japanese drumming group performs in Allen Centennial Garden.

October 4th, Allen Centennial Garden hosted their #HarvestFestival. Attendees got to see performances, food, and art from local and international cultures. The Garden hosted groups such as the Beni Daiko Madison Japanese Taiko Drumming Group and chefs such as Qwantese Winters.

Irwin Goldman breeds and conducts research on carrots, onions and table beets. #WARF100 @uwchancellor.bsky.social @uwmadisonpas.bsky.social @uwmadisoncals.bsky.social https://www.warf.org/commercialize/uw-madison-inventor-profiles/goldman/

Map of low temperatures in Wisconsin for October 9.

Not as cold overall this morning as it was yesterday, but more parts of the state got into the frost and freeze criteria.

The growing season is coming to an end and it is becoming more fall-like by the day.

A person smiles and holds a pumpkin that has the text "Goldman Lab" carved into it.

A person paddles a pumpkin with a kayak paddle.

Last weekend, the Goldman Lab hosted the #Pumpkin Regatta! It was a beautiful day to paddle a pumpkin. 🧡

Background image of a solar panel. Text says, "Currents for Currants, Agrivoltaics at UW-Madison." In the bottom right is a QR code to YouTube.

At the @uwmadison.bsky.social Kegonsa Research Campus, scientists from across UW and the @savannainstitute.bsky.social are growing currant berries between solar panels. This practice is known as #agrivoltaics and has many potential benefits.

Learn more: www.youtube.com/watch?v=EMGH...

Tomorrow!

Tomorrow!

Drawing of a canoe in the sunset. Text reads, "Harvest Festival 2025, Allen Centennial Garden. Free fun for all! Saturday October 4th 12PM to 6PM."

The Harvest Festival is back! Visit Allen Centennial Garden this weekend for great tunes, plant activities, and a special visit from the canoe that hangs in Dejope along with its Ojibwe maker. The event is free, and everyone is welcome! allencentennialgarden.wisc.edu/harvest-fest...

People study soil in a mountainous region. Text reads, "Agroecology Abroad. Q and A with Taigan Anderson." There is a QR code in the bottom right corner.

Taigan Anderson, one of our #agroecology majors, has already completed five study abroad programs in her first two years at UW-Madison. She has traveled to Austria, France, Iceland, and Japan to study health and agriculture.

Learn more through the QR code or at: pasdept.wisc.edu/2025/09/08/a...

Text says, "Paddle the Pumpkin. 20th Annual Giant Pumpkin Regatta. Memorial Union Terrace. 11 AM October 4th, 2025. Free event. No experience necessary."

Two people use kayak paddles to paddle pumpkins.

A person sits in a pumpkin boat and smiles.

Join us October 4th at 11AM at the Memorial Union Terrace for the 20th Annual Giant Pumpkin Regatta!

These pumpkins are grown by the Goldman Lab in the Department of Plant and Agroecosystem Sciences.

The event is free, and no experiences is necessary. See you there!

Text says, "University of Wisconsin Madison Latine Heritage Month. September 15 to October 15 2025. Amor sin fronteras."

Join UW-Madison in celebrating Latine Heritage Month! This year’s theme, Amor Sin Fronteras (“Love Without Borders” in Spanish), focuses on the interrelation of cultures across Latin America and the United States - and how they continue to evolve. Learn more at: go.wisc.edu/latine

Text says, "Welcome Week Events at Allen Centennial Garden. September 8, Herb Collection Garden Tour. 4 PM to 5:30 PM. September 9 Plant Watercolors from 1 PM to 2:30 PM. September 10 Bouquet Making from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM. September 11th Thursday Embroidery from 3 PM to 5 PM. September 12 Friday Plant Adoption Day from 2 PM to 5 PM."

Welcome back for the fall semester! We'll be having some fun events at Allen Centennial Garden next week, and our department will be tabling at Plant Adoption Day. See you there!

Text says, "Agronomy and Soils Field Day. Wednesday, August 27. Arlington Research Station."

Join us Wednesday for the Agronomy and Soils Field Day at Arlington Research Station! Learn more: cals.wisc.edu/extension-ou...