AGECO 134 / R SOC 134 Sustainable Agriculture Science and Policy.
(3 credits) The science, socioeconomics, and politics of managing food production systems. Sustainability implications of current practices and options for the future. (http://agroecology.psu.edu/ageco134.cfm). Faculty: Heather Karsten and Clare Hinrichs.
AGECO 490 Agroecology Colloquium.
(3 credits) Agroecosystems Science Colloquium will provide the opportunity for agroecology students to discuss current topics related to the major. Students will be expected to participate in discussions and also lead discussions in an effort to increase their communication skills. Faculty: Heather Karsten.
AGECO 497 Principles of Weed Management.
(4 credits) This lecture/lab course will address the subject from an integrated weed management perspective. The course's foundation is a study of weed biology and ecology. On that foundation, weed control methods and principles of their integration are studied and applied. The final third of the course focuses on one method of control, chemical, studying herbicide fate in plants and the soil/water environment. Faculty: David Mortensen.
AGESS 201 Introductory Agroecology.
(1 credit). Introductory Agroecology is designed to lay the groundwork for the major and serve to acquaint students with the ecological underpinnings of conventional production agriculture, sustainable agriculture, and organic agriculture. Faculty: Mike Saunders.
AGRO 597B Ecology of Agricultural Systems.
(3 credits) This graduate level course will focus on examining the ecological and agroecological research literature. Emphasis will be on discussing research and review papers. Students may focus on agroecological research that is relevant to their graduate research programs or interests. Faculty: Heather Karsten.
Agroecology Internships
Designed for students and faculty to study agroecology on working farms, gain a whole-farm perspective. Students spend 1 week on campus, 10 weeks on a sustainable or organic farm, document their experiences, conduct individual study projects, and visit other host farms.
Project Contact: Heather Karsten.
Agroecology
Undergraduate Major
Multidisciplinary training from faculty in Crop and Soil Science, Plant Pathology, Entomology, and Horticulture. Agroecology Program Coordinator Michael Saunders.
HORT 431 - Small Fruit Culture.
(3 credits) Helps students link theory learned from fundamental courses, such as soils, plant physiology, and plant breeding, to the practice of producing small fruit (berry) crops and acquaints students with production systems and issues in small fruit crops. Emphasis is placed on integrated crop management and crop ecosystems. Faculty: Elsa Sanchez.
SOILS 412W Soil Ecology
(3 credits) Introduction to soil organisms; includes interactions between organisms, their processes, and metabolism with a major focus on microorganisms. Faculty: Mary Ann Bruns.
SOILS 512 Environmental Soil Microbiology
(3 credits) Biology and ecology of microorganisms in terrestrial environments; microbiological and molecular analysis methods; microbial processes in carbon and nitrogen cycling. Faculty: Mary Ann Bruns.
