Header image: Jack, Liam, and Matthew in our FFAR experimental plots. Photo by SLU/lab alum Lizzie Kelley @lizkelphotos

It was a wild and crazy 2022 field season but we got it done! Top row: Deva, Zoraya, Kenneth, Tyler, Catherine, Shayla, Nelson, Jack. Bottom row: Mathew, Shannon, Molly, Allison.

September 2022: Lab graduate students Kenneth Okonkwo, Biva Chapagain, and Deva Raj Khanal attended a SLU welcome event for International Students with SLU President Fred Pestello.

August 2022: Today we celebrated the great work of REU student Nick and lab technician Toni (sadly leaving the lab soon), and also welcomed new lab members Molly, Deva, Biva, Danielle, and Zoraya. Missing from this photo: Kenneth, Nia, Tyler.

Zach Harris, PhD - April 29, 2022 successful defense!

Joel Swift, PhD - May 2, 2022 successful defense!

May 2022: Celebration of graduating SLU seniors!

July 2021 - Lab Celebration of the successful dissertation of Brigette Williams. Sadly, Brigette is not in the picture because she defended her dissertation remotely from Idaho (!!). We toasted over the phone.

NSF PGRP Grape Grafting team, August 2019. From L to R: Laszlo Kovacs (Co-PI, Missouri State), Allison Miller (PI, SLU/Danforth Center), Dan Chitwood (Co-PI, MIchigan State), Laura Klein (Post-doc, SLU/Danforth), Joel Swift (PhD Student, SLU), Zoë Migicovksy (Post-doc, Michigan State/Dalhousie), Mani Awale (PhD student, Univ. Missouri), Matt Maimaitimiying, Univ. Missouri), Courtney Coleman (Post-doc, Missouri State), Qin Ma (Co-PI, Ohio State), Anne Fennell (Co-PI, South Dakota State), Zach Harris (PhD student, SLU/Danforth Center), Misha Kwasniewski (Co-PI, Univ. Missouri), Jason Londo (Co-PI, USDA-ARS GGRU); Peter Cousins (GOALI Liaison, industry partner).

Post-docs Laura Klein and Claudia Ciotir, and Research Assistant Emma Frawley.

NSF PGRP Grape grafting project team. Back row: Laszlo Kovacs (Co-PI, Missouri State Univ.), Zach Harris (PhD student, Saint Louis Univ.), Dan Chitwood (Co-PI, Indep. Researcher), Joel Swift (NSF GRF, Saint Louis Univ.), Peter Cousins (E. & J. Gallo Winery), Adam McDermaid (PhD student, South Dakota State Univ.), Misha Kwasniewski (Co-PI, Univ. Missouri), Jason Londo (Co-PI, USDA-ARS), Gaurab Bhattari (MS Student, Missouri State Univ.). Front row: Mani Awale (PhD student, Univ. Missouri), Zoë Migicovsky (Post-doc, Dalhousie Univ.), Allison Miller (PI, Saint Louis Univ.), Laura Klein (Post-doc, Saint Louis Univ.), Anne Fennell (Co-PI, South Dakota State Univ.). Not shown: Al Kovaleski (PhD student, Cornell), Qin Ma (Co-PI, South Dakota State Univ.).

2017 NSF REU student Emma Bergh

2017 NSF REU student Summer Sherrod

July 31, 2017 Mount Vernon sampling day: Serling, Laszlo, Zach, Anita, Dani, Brigette, Joel, Emma, Allison

Vickie Williams, Olivia Weigl, and Niyati Bhakta scanning leaves from Mount Vernon.

Planting kernza and alfalfa in the Grow Exhibit at SLSC. L to R: Joel, Laura, Paige, Allison Sterling, Alex, Chris, and Maddie.

Brook Micke (SLU 2017) presents her work at the Sigma Xi Research Symposium

Sterling and Claudia at the Missouri Botanical Garden Research Open House Feb 2017

Lab celebration/meeting

Domestication Genomics Annual Dinner, PAG 2017

Christian Kingeter (SLU 2017) presents his work at the Sigma Xi Research Symposium

Celebrating Dr. Klein with the fams

PhD student Brigette Williams' first committee meeting

Plant Science Research Network meeting, Tucson AZ

Grape grafting team meeting at PAG 2017.

Dan Chitwood and Allison Miller, Sept 2016

Sterling tries out Kernza beer - Long Root Ale www.patagoniaprovisions.com

A great team from SLU, Missouri Bot Garden, and The Land Institute, Dec 2016

1st annual Perennial Agriculture Project Global Inventory Project Meeting! 12/16, KS

Fall 2016: Claudia (postdoc) and Sam (SLU undergrad) at The Land Institute Prairie Festival in Salina, KS

Summer 2016: Allison, Laura, and Rebekah in the Mount Vernon vineyard

Summer 2016: Alex Linan with some exciting news re Diospyros evolution!

Summer 2016: SLU undergrad Samantha Selby working away in the MOBot herbarium on legumes for The Land Institute project.

Summer 2016: Dahlia Martinez, NSR REU student 2016 and Allison - touring SLU for a day!

Summer 2016: Sterling shows us around The Land Institute!

November 2015: SLU Graduate student Alex Linan and Missouri Botanical Garden curator George Schatz (pictured here) are in Mauritius collecting Diospyros. This collaborative project with George and Christy Edwards at (MBG) and is funded by the National Geographic Society.

April 2016: Steven Callen successfully defended his dissertation!

November 2015: SLU PhD Candidate Steven Callen organized a visit for Missouri State Senator Jamilah Nasheed to the research division of the Missouri Botanical Garden. A portion of Steven's dissertation work depends upon research resources at MBG. Steven was a Science Policy Fellow with the Botanical Society of America, a program aimed at facilitating dialog between scientists and politicians.

October 2015: SLU PhD Candidate Laura Klein and undergraduate Chelsea Pretz extract DNA from grapevine leaves. This work is funded by the Saint Louis University Presidential Research Fund.

September 2015: MS Student Sterling Herron explores Indian Grass (Sorghastrum nutans) at The Land Institute Prairie Festival. This work is funded by the Perennial Agriculture Project in conjunction with the Malone Family Land Preservation Foundation/The Land Institute and the Saint Louis University Center for Sustainability

March 2015: SLU Undergrads Regan O'Hanlon and Madeleine Caito presented "Using herbarium specimens to quantify leaf shape: morphometric analysis of two North American Vitis species from natural populations" at the SLU Undergraduate Research Symposium.

March 2015: Lab group! Allison, Brooke, Regan, Alex, Laura, and Steven. Not pictured: Chelsea, Matthew, and Maddie.

Jan 2016: Annual Domestication Genomics dinner at the Plant and Animal Genome meeting. Thanks to Xin Shuai Qi for the photo!

December 2015: SLU Undergraduate students Samantha Selby (left) and Judith Bailey (center) partnered with Catrina Adams (right) as interns working on the Botanical Society's NSF funded Planting Science Program.