Dr. Lori Unruh-Snyder is an associate professor in the Department of Crop and Soil Science at NC State University. Her research focuses on cotton seed quality, particularly that related to visual mechanical damage (VMD) seed methodology. In addition, she has been working for two years, collecting data on how biostimulants impact seed quality. Dr. Unruh-Snyder will guide her graduate students, who have been working by her side, to establish baseline data related to biostimulants in cotton seed. She will be responsible for providing data for annual reports and scientific manuscripts resulting from this work.
Matthew Starr, pursuing a graduate (M.S. and Ph.D.) degree in Crop Sciences from North Carolina State University to explore innovative biostimulants’ ability to improve crop performance. Nearly 15 years of experience in soil science and water quality, further building expertise and gaining innovative techniques to increase crop productivity while implementing sustainable regenerative agriculture practices. A military background instilled valuable leadership skills and experience.
Marisa Crisp is a Graduate Student in the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences at North Carolina State University. Her focus is on seed physiology, seed quality, and evaluating the impacts of mechanical damage on the health of cotton seeds and cotton crops. Marisa has worked with cotton for the past four years alongside Dr. Unruh-Snyder while she gained her BS in Crop and Soil Sciences and Certification in Regulatory Science. Her work has led her to incorporate regenerative agriculture in the study of seed quality using biostimulants to circumvent the adverse effects of damaged seeds in lab and real-world field settings.