Alvin J.M. Smucker

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Michigan State University
College of Agriculture & Natural Resources
Crop and Soil Sciences
ProfessorAppointed: 1983

Mailing Address

Department of Crop and Soil Sciences
Michigan State University
East Lansing, Michigan 48824-1325
United States

Contact Information

Phone: (517) 355-8370
Fax: (517) 355-0270
smucker@msu.edu

Qualifications

Ph.D., Michigan State University, Soil Physics, 1971.
M.S., Michigan State University, Soil Science, 1969.
B.A., Gosher College, Biology, 1965.

Expertise and Research Interests

Current research emphasizes C sequestration in soils, with a focus on plant root carbon and soil organic matter contributions to soil aggregation processes and function. Belowground soil C foodwebs and root system C interactions which affect the formation and function of soil aggregates in agroecosystem production systems.

Active research programs include soil water, nutrient and gas fluxes, plant root responses to stratifications of water, nutrients, gases, and pesticides within the soil, plantroot modeling, root growth, development, function and turnover (death) responses to soil environments, carbon allocations to the root systems and the efficient use of carbon by plant root systems and carbon utilization during root absorption processes.

My research interests include plant root responses to soil environments, root absorption efficiencies of nutrients, water, and pesticides. Root amelioration of groundwater pollution, and computer image analyses of biological systems, high speed computeralgorithms for the purpose of production - level analyses of video-recorded root images, and computer imaging of plants, soils, insects and their interactions.

Other Expertise

Academic Experience:
Expert witness in plant-soil-environment responses.
Editor/reviewer of journal publications and research proposals;
Grant proposal director, chairman church and community boards;
Consultant to secondary and primary education of the sciences;
Consultant to industry, courts, Argentina, Peru, Brazil, Nigeria, Austria, Australia, Switzerland, Germany, England, India and Taiwan;
Fellow, American Society of Agronomy, 1989;
Fellow, Soil Science Society of America, 1989;
Distinguished McMaster Research Fellow (Australia), 1987-88;

Business Experience:
Consultant to Bartz Technology (California) and Agriculex (Canada)

Keywords

COS Keywords:

Agriculture, Agronomy, Biotechnology, Crop Science, Forensic Science, Image Processing, Plant Sciences, Separation Process, Soil Sciences, Sustainable Agriculture.

Additional Terms:

Agroecosystem, Agronomy, Biotechnology, Forensic Science, Groundwater Quality, Image Processing of Root's, Mineral-organic Elutriation, Plant Stress, Plant-soil Interaction, Rhizosphere Dynamics, Root-soil Dynamics, Separation Sciences, Soil Science, Soil Water Decontamination, Sustainable Agriculture.

Languages

(Reading, Writing, Speaking)

Spanish: (Fluent, Functional, Functional)
French: (Functional, None, None)
Portuguese: (Basic, None, None)

Memberships

American Association for the Advancement of Science
American Society of Agronomy
American Soil Science Society
International Society of Root Research
International Society of Soil Science
Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society

Honors and Awards

2001 Sigma Xi Senior Scientists Research Award, MSU Chapter of Sigma Xi, Michigan State University, Research in plant and soil carbon
Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science, Plant root research
Fellow, American Society of Agronomy, Soil and plant interactions
Fellow, Crop Science Society of America, Plant root contributions to crop productivity
Fellow, Soil Science Society of America, Soil physical and biophysical research
Visiting Chair Professor, Scottish Agricultural College, Plant root and soil research

Previous Positions

1983 Professor of Soil Biophysics, Michigan State University
1980-1987, University of Wisconsin and Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) (Australia), Sabbatical Leaves
1977-1983, Michigan State University, Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Associate Professor
1971-1977, Michigan State University, Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Assistant Professor

Patents

Improved fluidic apparatus and method, Patent Number: ID97-075/97-080, 2001, , United States.
Method and Apparatus for Isolation of Trace Materials from a Heterogenous Sample, Patent Number: 6164456, , Institution-owned, United States.
Hydropneumatic Elutriator Root Separation System, U.S. Patent No. 4,478,710, 1984, institution-owned
Hydropneumatic Elutriator Root Separation System, Canada Pat. No. 1,207,473, 1986, institution-owned

Funding Received

  • United States Department of Agriculture (USDA): CASMGS, $129,000, March 1, 2002 to .
  • : MSU - WATER, $86,000, March 1, 2000 to .
  • Belowground Carbon Cycling within Demographic Associations of Collembola and Roots, DEB 9527663, $320,000, September 1996-August 1999
  • Reduction of Groundwater Contamination by Integrated Corn Production Systems in Michigan, Michigan Marketing Board, $26,000, April 1996-March 1997

Publications

  • A.J. Erickson, R.S. Ramsewak, A.J.M. Smucker, M.G. Nair, NItrificaion inhibitors from roots of Leucaena leucocephala, Journal of Agric. Food and Chem 48:6174-6177, 48, 6174-6177, 2000
  • D.P. Rasse, A.J.M. Smucker, Alfalfa root and shoot mulching effects on soil hydraulic properties and aggregation, Soil Science Society of America Journal, 63:, 725-731, 2000
  • P.B. Albee, G.C. Stockman, A.J.M. Smucker, 2000, Extraction of pores from microtomographic reconstructions of intact soil aggregates, Mathematics and Computer Sci. Div., Argonne National Lab, ANL/MCS-P790-0100, 2000
  • D.P. Rasse, J.T. Ritchie, W.R. Peterson, J.Wei, A.J.M. Smucker, Rye cover crop and N fertilization effects on nitrate leaching in inbred maize fields, Journal of Environmental Quality, 29, 298-304, 2000
  • F.K. Akinnifesi, A.J.M. Smucker, B.T. Kang, G. Schroth, Belowground dynamics in agroforestry systems, Annals of Arid Zone, 38, 239-273, 1999
  • H.P. Collins, E.T. Elliott, K Paustain, L.G. Bundy, W.A. Dick, D.R. Huggins, A.J.M. Smucker, E.A. Paul, Soil carbon pools and fluxes in long-term corn belt agroecosystems, Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 32, 157-168, 1999
  • D.P. Rasse, A.J.M. Smucker, O. Schabenberger, Modifications of soil nitrogen pools and fluxes in response to alfalfa root systems and shoot mulch, Agronomy Journal, 91, 471-477, 1999
  • D.P. Rasse, A.J.M. Smucker, Root recolonization of previous root channels in corn and alfalfa rotations, Plant and Soil, 204, 203-212, 1999
  • D.P. Rasse, A.J.M. Smucker, Tillage effects on soil nitrogen and plant biomass in a corn-alfalfa rotation, Journal of Environmental Quality, 28, 873-880, 1999
  • Santos D, Murphy S L, Taubner H, Smucker A J, Horn R, Uniform separation of concentric surface layers from soil aggregates, Soil Science Society of America Journal, 61(3), 720-724, 1997
  • Smucker A J, Srivastava A K, Adams M W, Knezek B D, Secondary tillage and traffic compaction modifications of the growth and production of dry edible beans and soybeans, Applied Engineering in Agriculture, 7(2), 149-152, 1991
  • Aiken, R.M. and A.J.M. Smucker. 1996. Root System Regulation of Whole Plant Growth. Annu. Rev. Phytopath. 34:325-347
  • Pietola, L. A.J.M. Smucker. 1995. Fine root dynamics for alfalfa and following a late invasion by weeds. Agron. J. 87:1161-1169
  • Murphy, S.L. and A.J.M. Smucker. 1995. Evaluation of video image analysis and line-intercept methods for measuring root systems of alfalfa and ryegrass. Agron. J. 87: 865-868
  • Smucker, A.J.M., B.G. Ellis, and B.T. Kang. 1995. Root, nutrient and water dynamics in alley cropping on an Alfisol in a forest savanna transition zone. In: Kang, B.T., A.O. Osiname, and A. Larbi (eds). Alley Farming Research and Development, Proc. of anInternational Conf. on Alley Farming. Ibadan, Nigeria. pp. 103-121
  • Smucker, A.J.M. and R.M. Aiken. 1992 Dynamic Root responses to water deficits. Soil Science 154:281-289
  • Smucker, AJM, A Nunez-Barrios and JT Ritchie. 1991. Root dynamics in drying soil environments. Belowground Ecology 2:4-5
  • Smucker, AJM. 1990. Quantification of root dynamcis in agroecological systems. In: VS Goel and JM Norman (eds) Instrumentation for Studying Vegetation Canopies for Remote Sensing in Optical and Thermal Infrared Regions. Remote Sensing Reviews 5:237-248
  • Smucker, AJM and Erickson, AE. 1989. Tillage and Compactive Modifications of Gaseous Flow and Soil Aeration. (WE Larson et al eds). In: Mechanics and Related Processes in Structured Agricultural Soils. Kluwer Academic Publishers, pp 205-221
  • Smucker, AJM, Ferguson, JC, DeBruyn, WP, Belford, RK and Ritchie, JT. 1987. Image analysis of video-recorded root systems. HM Taylor (ed). ASA Special Publication No 50 pp 67-80. Minirhizotron Observation Tubes: Methods and Applications for Measuring Root Dynamics
  • Smucker, A.J.M., D. Santos, Y. Kavdir., Concentric layering of carbon, nitrogen and clay within soil aggregates, Third Eastern Canada Soil Structure Workshop Proceedings, 129-140
  • Santos, D., S.L.S. Murphy, H. Taubner, A.J.M. Smucker, R. Horn., Uniform separation of concentric surface, Soil Science Society of America Journal, 60, 720-724

Profile Details

Last Updated: 6/22/2005

COS Expertise ID #260617
Reference this profile directly: http://myprofile.cos.com/smuckera17