Dr. Florence Sessoms

I started to work with mycorrhizal fungi during my PhD in Switzerland. It was eye opening to learn how these tiny and unseen soil organisms can have so much impact for plants and soil health. Later in my career, I understood we could not achieve better ecosystems sustainability and resilience by only relying on plant breeding and focusing only on above plant biomass. We need to have a better understanding of the soil community and take full advantage of its many benefits for the plants. The rhizosphere, its multitude of organisms, and their interactions in the soil and with the plants can lead to fantastic discoveries and reach this goal of improved ecosystem resilience and sustainability, especially in this changing world.

I would like to develop a research program studying the relationship between plant roots, mycorrhizae establishment and biological nitrification inhibition in turfgrass and other agricultural crops. 

Prior to joining us, Dr. Sessoms was a Researcher in the Turfgrass Science Group for the Department of Horticultural Science at the University of Minnesota. Her research interests while there included: plant interactions with soil micro-organisms; soil nitrogen conservation in turfgrass systems; and maintenance of ecosystem services under reduced input management. Prior to that role she held postdoctoral fellowships at the Biotechnology Institute (2014-2016) and the Plant Pathology department (2013-2014) both at the University of Minnesota. Additionally, Dr. Sessoms was a postdoctoral fellow at the Boyce Thompson Institute (2009-2012) an independent research institute located on Cornell University’s campus.

Not yet.

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I am so delighted to be a new faculty member of the Department of Horticulture and Crop Science. This department has so much to offer, great collaborations and facilities. I believe it is a fantastic place to develop my new lab, and I am excited be part of this thriving scientific community.

I love nature and I enjoy hiking with my family (my husband, our two girls and our dog); the outdoors is my source of inspiration. I also enjoy discovering new things and for that reason, I always find a class to learn a new activity: creating mosaics, making pottery, ironworking… right now, I am exploring glass ornament construction.