View our seminar speaker lineup and recordings for the 2026 Fall semester. Want to attend a seminar? Stay up to date with events by adding the Plant Sciences Google Calendar. Seminar Recordings will be added week by week. Recordings are available for 180 days after the date of the seminar.
Seminars are at 3:30 pm CT on each date listed below in Alderman 405 and by Zoom. In-person attendance is highly encouraged and recommended. Snacks and light refreshments are provided thanks to the Horticultural Science Evadna Fern Cohen Fund, affectionately known as “The Cookie Fund.”
We're really excited to showcase just how far the horizons of horticulture extend at this semester’s seminar series! So much so, we've nicknamed it the Horticultural Horizons series, as we will explore the rich intersections of horticultural science across diverse disciplines, both near and far. The interdisciplinary lineup features perspectives on the culture and narrative of food, bioengineering innovations in microbial systems, digital solutions for modern horticulture, and community-engaged horticulture, among many other topics. From the whole of the seminar committee, we can't wait to see you all at the Welcome Back Social Hour on September 16th, 3:30-4:30 pm in Alderman 405!
Our seminars are possible thanks to the Hoover Family Fund, started by Emily Hoover and Jim Luby.
| Date | Title | Presenter(s) | Zoom Registration | Recording |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9/16/2026 | Welcome Back Social Hour | – | – | |
| 9/23/2026 | The Farmer, the Gastronome, and the Chef: In Pursuit of the Ideal Meal | English Professor: College of Liberal Arts at UMN | – | |
| 9/30/2026 | Phenological Patterns in Tree Physiology | Assistant Professor of Biology and Environmental Studies and Director of Environmental Conservation at St. Olaf College | – | |
| 10/7/2026 | Tales from the Borderlands: Navigating the rewards and pitfalls of community engagement. | Professor, School of Integrative Plant Science, Horticulture Section and Professor, Global Development Section at Cornell University Made possible thanks to the Hoover Family Fund. | – | |
| 10/14/2026 | Engineering Carbon Partitioning in Microbes Fed One-and Two-Carbon Substrates | Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science at UMN | – | |
| 10/21/2026 | TBD | UMN Extension - Laura Irish-Hanson, Matthew Gullickson, & Jon Trappe | – | |
| 10/28/2026 | Beyond the Season: Bridging Research and Reality in Deep Winter Greenhouse Production | Moderated by Josh Kielsmeier-Cook (UMN RSDP), this session brings together architecture researcher Dan Handeen, controlled environment agriculture specialist and researcher Dr. Nate Eylands, and local Deep Winter Greenhouse growers. | – | |
| 11/4/2026 | No seminar - Agronomy & Horticulture Conference | |||
| 11/11/2026 | TBD | Minnesota Agroforestry Advisor at the Savanna Institute | – | |
| 11/28/2026 | TBD | Senior Scientist at UMN GEMS | – | |
| 11/25/2026 | No seminar - Thanksgiving Break | |||
| 12/2/2026 | MAES | Associate Professor of Horticultural Science at UMN | – | |
| 12/9/2026 | Grapes in Minnesota and Beyond: Wine Not?* *HORT Department Only | Assistant Professor of Horticultural Science at UMN | *HORT Department Only | – |