Research groups that operate wholly or partly under the Department of Agricultural Sciences.
The groups are presented in alphabetical order by the last name of the group leader. The list also includes websites of the department's disciplines.
Sustainable food production can only be based on symbiotic relationships between humans and the diversity of organisms maintaining the ecosystem functioning. The objective of our team is to provide multidisciplinary understanding on such relationships on farmland and their implications for sustainable agronomy, social wellbeing, economy and policy, in Finland and beyond. Being an applied research group we aim to generate recommendations for land management, consumption and policy making. We work in close collaboration with the Future Sustainable Food Systems research group.
Agrotechnology research focuses on the development of environmentally sustainable technology for farming and food production. A strong emphasis is on technology innovation and sustainable technology by taking into account the interaction between technology, plants, animals, environment and society. Many future trends in agriculture require adoption of new technology and its integration within existing processes. Electrification of machinery, automation, information systems, and artificial intelligent represent technological methods that are important for future farming processes in order to develop environmentally sustainable technologies and mitigate environmental impacts.
Agrotechnology is one of the disciplines of the Department of the Department of Agricultural Sciences.
Our research advances the health, well-being, nutritional and breeding objectives of companion and production animals. Sustainable use of natural resources and mitigation of environmental impact are guiding us in developing animal production for future food security. Animal phenotype and genotype analyses are utilizing Big Data methodology. Our research is focused on 1) animal product quality and environmental footprint, 2) feed preservation and alternative feed sources, 3) nutrition physiology, health and welfare of farm animals, 4) selection programmes and 5) utilization of genomic information.
Animal Science is one of the disciplines of the Department of the Department of Agricultural Sciences.
Our research model is Gerbera hybrida, a common ornamental crop that represents the large Asteraceae plant family. We are interested in the gene regulatory networks that control the unique inflorescence architecture in this family contributing to its evolutionary success. We also aim at dissecting the biosynthetic pathways leading to Asteraceae specific secondary metabolites.
We assess the challenges of climate change, sustainable and efficient crop production, environmental remediation, resource sufficiency, elemental cycles and environmental risk assessment with high quality interdisciplinary research. Soil is the interface of Earth’s hydrosphere, atmosphere, lithosphere and biosphere. We focus on the chemical, physical, microbiological and biological processes in soil that control the fluxes and fate of elements, chemical compounds, water & energy. On the basis of scientific knowledge on environmental soil science, we work to find solutions from global to local scales.
Environmental Soil Science is one of the disciplines of the Department of the Department of Agricultural Sciences.
Plant phenomics is a discipline that uses high throughput methods to link genes to their function in plant context. Our team is focused on study the function of Ubiquitin Proteasome System (UPS) components in Arabidopsis growth and development as well as in responses to environmental challenges. Our team is also in charge of coordinating research activities at the National Plant Phenotyping Infrastructure - NaPPI.
We explore environmental and genetic regulation of growth cycle in a perennial model species woodland strawberry (Fragaria vesca). Woodland strawberry is widely distributed through Europe and exhibits significant natural variation in the control of growth cycle including the timing of flowering and dormancy. To understand the role of this variation in climate adaptation, we carry out population genomic screens to reveal signatures of natural selection and their phenotypic consequences on the growth cycle. The function of selected candidate genes as drivers of climate adaptation will be tested using molecular genetic and physiological studies.
We study how light affects the growth, chemical composition and ageing of plants. Many stress-induced phytochemicals affect the resilience, color, flavor and nutritional value of vegetables. Our aim is to apply the basic knowledge of plant photobiology for improved indoor cultivation and post-harvest quality of vegetables.
Urban green infrastructure, including man-made features such as vegetated roofs and walls, produce regulating, provisioning and immaterial ecosystem services such as improvement of microclimate, balancing of hydrological cycle, carbon sequestration, habitat provision, active cooling/insulation, dust filtering, opportunities for gardening and local food production in kitchen gardens, aesthetic improvement, additional green space and recreational services and educational services via e.g. nature paths on the roofs. The area of roofs and walls in cities is enormous, so why not make good use of it for ecosystem services provided by building surfaces. The research programme "Fifth Dimension - Transformative urban greening" aims to produce high-level scientific and broadly applicable knowledge on optimal vegetated roof solutions in Finland.
We are studying the potential of Finnish Sphagnum mosses for applications in horticulture. The main aspects include the physical properties of Sphagnum moss, allelopathic effects of Sphagnum species and the growth of greenhouse crops in Sphagnum containing substrates.
Crop production, crop growth and crop quality are an interaction between management, genotype and environment. We investigate ways to reduce environmental restrictions on crop growth and crop quality as well as to develop sustainable management practices that will all together guarantee crop productivity in a changing climate.
Plant viral diseases are a global and growing problem. Potyviruses are the largest genus of RNA viruses in plants. We are interested in molecular elucidation of the different stages of potyvirus infection and how the viral processes are localized and coordinated within the infected cells. Host plant proteins act in potato virus A (PVA) infection either for or against the progression of the infection. Genes encoding pro-viral host factors are called susceptibility genes. The identification and functional characterization of such factors with the ultimate goal to create virus resistance with a loss-of-susceptibility approach is the main aim of our research.
We work to reveal the sources and sinks of methane and nitrous oxide in forest ecosystems. Our work spans from molecular to ecosystem-scale and include state-of-the art field and laboratory measurements and process modelling.
Fields of research in Plant Production Sciences are Agroecology, Crop Science, Horticulture, Plant Breeding, Plant Pathology and Agricultural Zoology. Important research questions are the sustainability of agriculture and food systems, agrobiodiversity, the environmental effects of production and adaptation to climate change, response of cultivated plants to environmental stresses, managing crop yield and quality, plant-based bioenergy, phytoremediation, molecular basis of flower development, conservation of genetic resources, plant genomics, secondary metabolism in plants, plant biotechnology, and plant-pathogen interactions and defense mechanisms.
Plant Production Sciences is one of the disciplines of the Department of the Department of Agricultural Sciences.
Legumes are a key component of sustainable cropping and food systems. This group focuses on the grain legume faba bean (Vicia faba), from gene to plate and back again, with national and international collaboration: genomics, genetics, breeding, agronomy, environmental impacts, food uses, and feed uses. We explore the role of legumes in sustainability of cropping systems and food chains.
AgriChar research group is focused on exploring the mechanisms of the long-term effects of biochar in boreal soils, nutrient recycling and organic fertilizers. We have also ongoing projects in the areas of using biochar for re-using the phosphorus in lake sediments and reed.
The multidisciplinary research team is interested is exploring solutions for ensuring the sustainability of food systems in the future. The special focus of the group is in the assessment of the potential of novel technologies considering environmental, economic and social dimensions of sustainability.