Dr. Osler Ortez

I'm from northern Nicaragua - my family farms coffee. Our rural communities also had small scale corn & the equivalent of US soybeans. I was fortunate enough to get a scholarship to come here to the US. While I was working on my PhD at Nebraska, I began focusing on corn. 

• Nutrient response in corn - we're specifically looking at utilizing sulfur - to increase productivity, yield, and quality (not just what are we producing but how good is it actually). 
• Emerging crops - I'm hoping to collobarate with Dr. Cornish's PENRA group - to help them better understand the agronomics of natural rubber

I come from a background of coffee production (in northern Nicaragua), soybean production (in Kansas and Argentina), and corn production (in Nebraska and the US Midwest). As soon as I saw the job posting here at OSU; I knew it was perfect for my interests - I was a bit early applying (I was still finishing up my PhD) but thought I would put my best foot forward to achieve my bigger goals.

None currently - In the past this has been a big part of my career and opportunity permitting I hope to be more involved internationally in the future.

Agronomy, Crops & Soils (aka the tri-societies meeting) - is my favorite; I've attended the past 9 years! This is a great meeting for making new friends, seeing scientific advancements & getting new ideas to bring back home.

All the new faculty members - I'm looking forward to working with whoever comes. The new ideas, projects & backgrounds they'll bring will surely make for exciting collaborations!

I like to have a good balance between work, family & community. I'm a big mountain biker & active member of my church. I also try to be involved in activities that support the community (I'm currently involved with a non-profit that helps kids with autism get some training in agriculture activities). I also enjoy BBQs and hanging out with friends & talking with family.