Rossi's Hort Crop Physiology Lab

🍇💧 Just wrapped up a really nice Vineyard Water Management Workshop at Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center in Lubbock, TX!
Big thanks to Dr. Patrick O'Brien for putting together such a nice program. It was great to see so growers, students, along with colleagues from Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, Texas Tech University, and Texas A&M University Department of Horticultural Sciences.

I really appreciated the interactions, learned something new, had the opportunity to showcase our research, and hopefully planted the seeds 🌱 for some new collaborations.

🔥 Hot off the press! I am excited to share our new open-access publication: “Physiological Responses of Scion and Rootstock in Grafted Grapefruit Trees under Salinity Stress” This research was completed by Dr. Neus Alcón Bou, former Ph.D. student in my lab at the UF IFAS Horticultural Sciences Department, based at the University of Florida/IFAS Indian River Research and Education Center. The paper is presented as a collaborative effort with the Texas A&M University Department of Horticultural Sciences, bringing together colleagues with expertise in citrus physiology, irrigation, and salinity management. Our findings show that salinity tolerance depends on selecting the right scion-rootstock combination, not simply the rootstock alone.

Read the article: https://lnkd.in/gMCni6Rq

I can hardly believe I’m saying this: the HORT 202 Horticultural Science and Practices Laboratory textbook is undergoing its final checks and is headed to print! This has truly been a team effort. I am especially grateful to Jacob Muras and our outstanding teaching assistants, whose hard work and ideas helped bring this manual to life. Across 15 weeks and 15 hands-on labs, students will explore taxonomy, plant reproduction, drought, salinity, hydroponics, LED lighting, soil composition, and much more.

The manual is dedicated to Dr. David Reed, whose commitment to HORT 201 and HORT 202 for more than 45 years inspired generations of students and laid its foundation.

Horticulture has been part of Texas A&M since its first class. Read my preface to discover more of that history, and consider becoming part of its future by majoring in horticulture or joining our Texas A&M University Department of Horticultural Sciences.

Thanks, and Gig ’em! 👍

🚨 We will be in Lubbock this Friday! Excited to speak at the Vineyard Water Management Workshop at the Texas A&M AgriLife Research & Extension Center, hosted by Dr. Patrick O'Brien. We will be sharing updates from our Texas Water Resources Institute funded research on PFAS and nanoplastics in irrigation water and their potential uptake by Texas grapes and pecans. If you're in the area, stop by, say hello, and spend the day with us! 🍇💧 See the flyer below for all the details.

Some people don't just grow plants. They have a gift for it!

Congratulations to Justin Braune on being named the 2026 Texas FFA State Winner in Vegetable Production! 🏆🌱

Justin joined my lab at Texas A&M University Department of Horticultural Sciences in Spring 2026 as an undergraduate student worker to help with HORT 202 lab, and what a difference he has made. The greenhouses have never looked better.

Beyond watering and maintaining student trials, Justin has become an essential part of our research team. He analyzed thousands of microscope images that helped complete a project on sweet orange and grapefruit xylem and phloem anatomy under citrus greening. This project began years ago when I was at the University of Florida/IFAS Indian River Research and Education Center, in collaboration with Dr. Lukas Hallman during his Ph.D. in my lab and his research stay at the Eidg. Forschungsanstalt WSL in Switzerland. Thanks to Justin's dedication, we will be presenting this work at the American Society for Horticultural Science Annual Conference next month.

What impresses me most is not only Justin's talent, but also his character. He has a big heart, an incredible work ethic, and is simply a genuinely good person. He has been a true blessing to my lab.

Congratulations, Justin. This recognition is well deserved, and I am excited to see what the future holds for you.

As America marks 250 years of independence, we are grateful for the generations of Americans whose hard work, sacrifice, and love of country have preserved them. Two hundred and fifty years ago, our founders declared that "all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." Those words remain at the heart of the American experiment. Happy Independence Day, and happy 250th birthday to the United States of America. 🇺🇸

🚨 Hot off the press! 🚨

Happy to see this collaborative work between Zachry Department of Civil & Environmental Engineering at Texas A&M and Texas A&M University Department of Horticultural Sciences published.

This paper is also a nice milestone for me because it continues a collaboration with Dr. Samuel Ma that started almost 10 years ago during my postdoc here at Texas A&M University. It has been rewarding to see this collaboration continue to grow over the years.

In this study, we looked at how nanoplastics and organic acids affect PFAS uptake by lettuce. Our results show that these interactions can substantially change PFAS accumulation in plants, reinforcing the need to study these contaminants under more realistic environmental conditions.

Looking forward to continuing this work on other crops.

--> https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772985026000487

🚨 We're Hiring! The Texas A&M University Department of Horticultural Sciences is searching for an Assistant Professor in Artificial Intelligence for Horticultural Crop Systems. If you're passionate about combining AI, machine learning, plant biology, sensing technologies, and horticultural production to solve real-world challenges, we'd love to hear from you!

📅 Review of applications begins August 10, 2026.

Full position announcement and application details: https://apply.interfolio.com/187771

This Memorial Day, we honor the brave men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to our nation. As Aggies, we remember the values of selfless service, leadership, and dedication exemplified by those who gave everything for our freedom.