Freezing tolerance - Forage nutrtitive values - Plant defense phytohormones

You are invited to attend three seminars in the Plant Science Graduate Seminar Series.

PRESENTERS:

GABRIEL LAMBERT-RIVEST
Brachypodium sylvaticum: Developing a new model to study freezing tolerance in perennial grasses

The interest in perennial crops is increasing. In temperate climates, perennial grasses may be exposed to freezing stress, an important cause of crop damages and subsequent economic losses in Quebec. Our results suggest that some accessions of B. sylvaticum, a model plant and perennial grass, can cold-acclimate and subsequently acquire tolerance to freezing. B. sylvaticum is a powerful tool for the study these mechanisms in perennial grasses.

SHANE WOOD
Predictive equations of forage nutritive value for use under Québec’s environmental conditions

The objective of my project has been to provide agricultural producers in Québec with a simple tool to help them determine the optimal time to harvest their forage crops. We tested the suitability of predictive equations developed in the United States for predicting forage nutritive value of alfalfa-grass mixtures in the Province of Québec. We found that some of the equations were directly applicable to Quebec, while others had to be modified to meet regional needs.

HONGLIANG SU
The effect of plant defense phytohormones on caterpillar herbivores

To protect themselves against caterpillar herbivory, plants activate the jasmonate (JA) biosynthetic pathway leading to the induction of defense compounds. My research focuses on determining the effect of defense phytohormones in the JA pathway on the development, mortality and pupal weight of the cabbage looper, Trichopluia ni, a facultative specialist on plants in the Brassicaceae family, and the beet armyworm, Spodoptera exigua, a generalist.

EVERYONE IS WELCOME TO ATTEND