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 Plant Genetic Resources Unit (PGRU): Geneva, NY
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ARS Home Northeast Area Geneva, New York Plant Genetic Resources Unit (PGRU) People







Zachary  Stansell    Research Geneticist (Plants) /ARSUserFiles/55756/Current-PGRU-Research-Images/8-12-21_HempFieldDay_Agritech-small.jpg Zachary Stansell Hemp Curator Plant Genetic Resources Unit (PGRU) zachary.stansell@usda.gov(315) 787-2454  **Overview** I am a geneticist, horticulturalist, and curator of the PGRU Vegetable and Hemp Crop Collections. Hemp (*Cannabis sativ*a L.) was a vital agronomic crop in the U.S. and has experienced a resurgence of interest in recent years.  My goal is to conserve, maintain, evaluate, and increase hemp genetic resources, and ensure these resources are available for long-term research, education, and cultivar development. My team follows an interdisciplinary approach to better understand the genomic and phenomic variation within our collection. These results are used to facilitate germplasm utilization across a broad range of stakeholders via aggregation of robust phenotypic and genetic datasets Currently, my research includes several topics: 1. Building and characterizing the world's largest public hemp genetic resource collection, with an awareness and understanding of the historical, current, and future status of hemp germplasm conservation. 2. Developing and applying phenotyping protocols to diverse hemp genetic resources and making those data publicly and freely available to the hemp community. 3. Understanding population structure within the larger pool of hemp germplasm and leveraging this knowledge to enhance conservation, mapping, and breeding efforts. 4. Addressing bottlenecks within hemp improvement efforts by regenerating unique resources, while developing unique mapping populations that serve the broader community.
  **Education** Ph.D. in Horticulture (2020), Cornell University, Ithaca, NY Master’s in Environmental Science (2014), College of Charleston, Charleston, SC B.S. in Chemistry and Mathematics (2008), College of Charleston, Charleston, SC   Publications(Clicking on the reprint iconReprint Icon  will take you to the publication reprint.)Evaluation of drought tolerance in USDA tomato germplasm at seedling stage-(Peer Reviewed Journal) Chiwina, K., Bhattarai, G., Xiong, H., Joshi, N., Dickson, R.W., Phiri, T.M., Alatawi, I., Chen, Y., Stansell, Z.J., Ling, K., Shi, A. 2024. Evaluation of drought tolerance in USDA tomato germplasm at seedling stage. Agronomy. 14(2), 380. https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy14020380.Quantitative trait loci mapping of heat tolerance in a doubled haploid population of broccoli using genotyping-by-sequencing-(Abstract Only) Branham, S., Couillard, D.M., Stansell, Z.J., Farnham, M.W. 2016. Quantitative trait loci mapping of heat tolerance in a doubled haploid population of broccoli using genotyping-by-sequencing. Plant and Animal Genome Conference. P0950.Genetic diversity and population structure of collard landraces and their relationship to other Brassica oleracea crops-(Peer Reviewed Journal) Branham, S., Couillard, D.M., Stansell, Z.J., Farnham, M.W. 2015. Genetic diversity and population structure of collard landraces and their relationship to other Brassica oleracea crops. The Plant Genome. 8(3):1-11.Using weighted trait indices to select the best performing broccoli hybrids in multi-site and multi-year trials-(Abstract Only) Stansell, Z.J., Farnham, M.W., Pelc, S., Couillard, D.M., Bjorkman, T. 2015. Using weighted trait indices to select the best performing broccoli hybrids in multi-site and multi-year trials. HortScience. 50:S171.Genetic diversity and population structure of collard landraces collected in the Southeast-(Abstract Only) Pelc, S., Farnham, M.W., Couillard, D.M., Stansell, Z.J. 2015. Genetic diversity and population structure of collard landraces collected in the Southeast. HortScience. 50:S391.Increasing plant density in eastern United States broccoli production systems to maximize marketable head yields-(Peer Reviewed Journal) Ward, B., Smith, P., James, S., Stansell, Z.J., Farnham, M.W. 2015. Increasing plant density in eastern United States broccoli production systems to maximize marketable head yields. HortTechnology. 25:330-334.Collard land races are novel sources of glucoraphanin and other aliphatic glucosinolates-(Peer Reviewed Journal) Stansell, Z.J., Cory, W., Couillard, D.M., Farnham, M.W. 2015. Collard land races are novel sources of glucoraphanin and other aliphatic glucosinolates. Plant Breeding. 134:350-355.Genetic diversity and population structure of collard landraces-(Abstract Only) Pelc, S., Couillard, D.M., Stansell, Z.J., Farnham, M.W. 2015. Genetic diversity and population structure of collard landraces. HortScience. 50:S40.Collard Landraces are novel sources of Glucoraphanin and other Aliphatic Glucosinolates-(Abstract Only) Stansell, Z.J., Farnham, M.W., Cory, W. 2014. Collard Landraces are novel sources of Glucoraphanin and other Aliphatic Glucosinolates. HortScience. 49(9):S336.Using regional broccoli trial data to select experimental hybrids for input into advanced yield trials-(Abstract Only) Farnham, M.W., Stansell, Z.J., Griffiths, P.D., Davis, J.M., Hutton, M., Bjorkman, T. 2014. Using regional broccoli trial data to select experimental hybrids for input into advanced yield trials. HortScience. 49(9):S242-S243.Maximizing plant density affects broccoli yield and quality-(Abstract Only) Ward, B., Farnham, M.W., Smith, P., Stansell, Z.J., James, S. 2014. Maximizing plant density affects broccoli yield and quality. HortScience. 49(9):S211.  ProjectsEvaluation and Breeding of Diverse Hemp Germplasm for Disease ResistanceCooperative Agreement (A)Accession Number:445656Conservation, Characterization, Evaluation, and Utilization of Hemp Genetic Resources and Associated Descriptive InformationIn-House Appropriated (D)Accession Number:444227Evaluation and Breeding of Diverse Hemp Germplasm for Disease ResistanceInteragency Reimbursable Agreement (I)Accession Number:445216Whole Genome Sequencing and Sex Determination of the National Plant Germplasm Hemp CollectionNon-Assistance Cooperative Agreement (S)Accession Number:445646Maintenance and Distribution of Wild Species Germplasm at the C.M. Rick Tomato Genetic Resources CenterNon-Assistance Cooperative Agreement (S)Accession Number:444317Hemp Grain Protein and Fatty Acid QuantificationNon-Assistance Cooperative Agreement (S)Accession Number:445174Regeneration of Short-Day OnionsNon-Assistance Cooperative Agreement (S)Accession Number:436542Evaluation, Genome-wide Association Study and Genomic Prediction for Bacterial Wilt and Salt and Drought Tolerance in TomatoNon-Assistance Cooperative Agreement (S)Accession Number:438516Strengthening Hemp Research and Educational Capacity at Alabama A&M University by Morphological Evaluation of Diverse Hemp GermplasmNon-Assistance Cooperative Agreement (S)Accession Number:440866Characterization of Bottle Gourd (Lagenaria siceraria) AccessionsNon-Assistance Cooperative Agreement (S)Accession Number:442553  ARS News ArticlesitemUSDA-Agricultural Research Service and Cornell University Collaborate to Present First National Hemp Webinar Series


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