Ryan Hamberg

I initially heard about the FFAR Fellows program through colleagues in previous cohorts. They spoke highly of the experience, saying that it was very beneficial for professional development. After hearing about the numerous activities and workshops to improve your scientific communication, soft skills, and leadership, I was convinced that this fellowship was exactly what I was looking for. I am always looking for ways to improve my leadership and communication abilities and was excited about the opportunity to connect with a diverse network of young scientists and future leaders across the United States. The relationships you build with your cohort will last you throughout your career, and it is nice to know that all of us will always share a common bond that was facilitated through the program. My future goal is to communicate my research to broad audiences of farmers, scientists, students, and beyond, and I feel that the FFAR Fellows Program will help me hone the skills needed to do that successfully throughout my career.  

The basis of my PhD research is integrating non-chemical weed control in Texas row crops. Non-chemical weed control options that do not rely on intensive tillage are desperately needed by conventional and organic farmers across the US. Therefore, the focus of my PhD research is on novel non-chemical weed control methods that target weeds at multiple stages in the growing season and do not disturb or disrupt the soil. The two technologies of interest will be directed energy and electrocution. Directed energy (DE) combines multiple wavelengths of light both within and beyond the visible spectrum. When plants are subjected to these wavelengths, preliminary results have shown a significant reduction in biomass and, in most cases, total plant death for Palmer amaranth and Johnsongrass, two problematic weeds in row crops. Directed energy can be deployed before crop planting and/or between crop rows in place of tillage for controlling weeds for the entire growing season. 

Weed electrocution is another technology that can be deployed in lieu of herbicides and tillage. Electrical weed control is beginning to be adopted by more and more growers to control weed escapes. However, the most used electrical weed control tool can only target weeds that are taller than the crop canopy, which severely limits its utility. We have collaborated with Zasso to develop an inter-row weed electrocution device that we can deploy season-long in row crops. This will allow growers to reduce repeated tillage passes during the most critical weed control timings. My research objectives will be to determine the optimum timings for electrical weed control and to understand how weed growth stage, density, and environmental factors influence weed electrocution efficacy. 

My sponsor is Cotton Incorporated. I am lucky to work closely with Dr. Gaylon Morgan and Cotton Incorporated. They are a non-profit organization that provides resources and research to help cotton growers across the United States.