SENR is pleased to welcome Steve Culman to the faculty. Culman joined The Ohio State University in spring 2014 and is settling in nicely in Williams Hall in Wooster, Ohio at the Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center where he leads the Soil Fertility Lab and serves as the Ohio State University State Specialist in Soil Fertility. Culman earned a PhD in agronomy in 2008 from Cornell University and joins Ohio State after working as a post-doctoral researcher at the University of California, Davis and the Kellogg Biological Station at Michigan State University where he was engaged in a variety of research projects focused on evaluating tests of active organic matter, evaluating perennial grain crops and examining soil carbon and nitrogen cycling in a long-term cropping systems experiment.
At Ohio State Culman’s current research addresses soil fertility and management issues in Ohio and beyond. He will work collaboratively with growers to help manage nutrients more efficiently and to minimize producer costs and losses to the environment.
Culman, a native of Ohio is excited to join the school, especially, as he notes, “in light of the growing public interest in water quality and nutrient management in Ohio.” He is impressed with the vibrant relationship Extension has with the farming community in Ohio and with the groundwork that has been laid to conduct research and outreach on soil fertility and management. He also is excited about the opportunity to bring a more holistic perspective to soil fertility addressing both the physical and biological qualities of soils.
Jeff Sharp, interim director of the School of Environment and Natural Resources anticipates Culman's expertise will be in great demand among a broad range of College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences stakeholders and remarks, "I’ve been impressed at how quickly Steve has sought to partner with others in OSU Extension in developing an effective Extension and Research program."
Culman will be working closely with Clay Dygert, a research associate who brings a wealth of experience in soil fertility research and is expanding his team to include a post-doctoral researcher who will help to conduct research on developing affordable, soil-testing methods of active organic matter for growers and linking these methods to soil ecosystem function.
Culman’s research has been published in journals such as Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, Agronomy Journal, and the Soil Science Society of America Journal.
June 2014