I investigate the evolutionary reproductive biology of plants using theoretical and empirical approaches.
Most plants are hermaphroditic, gaining reproductive success through both male and female functions.
This simple fact poses interesting challenges to our understanding of the evolution of plant reproductive characters. Multilocus population genetic models Population genetics usually focuses on single locus models, providing valuable insights that are of more generality than usually appreciated. But some problems require explicit consideration of several loci. The directional evolutionary transition from outcrossing to self fertilization occurs more frequently than any other plant mating system change. The eminent ecologist John Harper praises plants as research organisms because they 'sit and wait to be counted'.