Neil O. Anderson
Websites
Education
- Ph.D. University of Minnesota, 1989, Horticulture (Plant Breeding)
- M.S. University of Minnesota, 1985, Horticulture (Plant Breeding)
- B.S. California Polytechnic State University, 1983, Ornamental Horticulture (Floriculture)

Faculty
Research Areas
Flower Breeding; Invasive Species; Self Incompatibility
Teaching
- HORT 1013 — Floral Design — Fall semester
- HORT 4015 — Spring Flowering Bulbs (Advanced Woody and Herbaceous Plant Topics) — Various terms
- HORT 4601 — Aquaponics — Spring semester
- HORT 5051 — Plant Production I — Spring semester
- HORT 6002 — Problem Solving in Horticulture — Fall semester
For more information on these courses, see the Course Catalog.
Research
The University of Minnesota Herbaceous Perennial Breeding Program is recognized as one of the premiere public-sector flower breeding project programs in the world. Our creation of new chrysanthemum plant habits (from large shrubs to groundcover types), discovery and breeding of reflowering, non-vernalization requiring lilies, release of USDA Zone 4 winter-hardy gladiolus, and cold-tolerant gaura are example research efforts enabling the generation of revitalized floricultural crops for the 21st century.
The new shrub chrysanthemums resulted in increased U.S. chrysanthemum sales from $104.8M (wholesale) in 2001 (when the first shrub type was released) to $123.65M (wholesale) in 2012, helping make mums the #1 herbaceous perennial in U.S. sales.
Shrub types also prompted growers to sell traditional cushion cultivars in larger containers to mimic shrub types. Winter hardy gladioli would not require digging the corms in the fall for overwintering; multiple flowering stems on each plant would increase cut stem yields.
Our advancements in lily breeding have resulted in the creation of colored, seed-propagated hybrids for continued development and domestication. Lilies, which flower under 1 year from seed and continuously flower thereafter, will significantly alter production and use of this crop as a cut flower, flowering potted plant, and garden perennial. Cut flower growers could harvest multiple stems/plant (rather than the standard 1 per bulb) continuously throughout the growing season (field) or in greenhouses (year-round)—rather than having to purchase and force a new crop of bulbs for each harvest. Flowering potted lilies would become dual-use products, enjoyed indoors for a holiday and then reflowered either indoors or outdoors for the growing season. As garden perennials, such lilies would allow for flowering throughout the season rather than just for less than 1 month.
Focus on preventing the creation of invasive ornamental floriculture crops prior to their release onto the market has led to research on contributing factors within the horticultural distribution channel, risk assessment, as well as plant traits to select against during domestication. Reed canarygrass, an ornamental herbaceous perennial, is being used as a model plant in which to study these factors. Continual incorporation of new traits, such as non-invasiveness and drought/heat tolerance will enable continued growth of the floriculture sector with readily adaptable germplasm. Testing for invasive potential of ornamental crops prior to market release must involve genotype-specific testing in multiple sites and locations over years, similar to the methodology used to assess winter hardiness. While costly, the long-term gains in preventing horticultural crop invasions are greater than selling non-winter hardy perennials.
Selected Publications
Five recent products:
- Nelson, M.F. and N.O. Anderson. 2013. How many marker loci are necessary? Analysis of dominant marker data sets using two popular population genetic algorithms. Ecology and Evolution 3(10):3455-3470.
- Nelson, N.F., N.O. Anderson, M.D. Casler and A.R. Jakubowski. 2013. Population genetic structure of N. American and European Phalaris arundinacea L. as inferred from inter-simple sequence repeat markers. Biological Invasions DOI:10.1007/s10530-013-0525-9.
- Smith, A.G., C.A. Eberle, N.G. Moss, N.O. Anderson, B.M. Clasen and A.D. Hegeman. 2013. The transmitting tissue of Nicotiana tabacum is not essential to pollen tube growth and its ablation can reverse prezygotic interspecific barriers. Plant Reproduction 26(4):339-350. DOI: 10.1007/s00497-013-0233-8.
- Drew, J., N.O. Anderson, and D. Andow. 2010. Conundrums of a complex vector for invasive species: A detailed examination of the horticultural industry. Biological Invasions 12(8):2837-2851. DOI 10.1007/s10530-010-9689-8.
- Smith, A.G. and N.O. Anderson. 2006. Engineered sterility for non-native plant invaders. II:232-239. In: J.A. Teixeira da Silva (Ed.), Floriculture, Ornamental and Plant Biotechnology: Advances and topical issues, Global Science Books, London.
Five other significant products:
- Hurley, T.M., C. Yue and N.O. Anderson. 2013. Polarized preferences in homegrown value auctions. Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics 38(2):187-203.
- Yue, C., T. Hurley and N. Anderson. 2012. Heterogeneous consumer preferences for native and invasive plants: Evidence from experimental auctions. HortScience 47(8):1091-1095.
- Gomez Raboteaux, N.N. and N.O. Anderson. 2011. Cultivar and Site-Specific Variation Affect Establishment Potential of the Cleomes Roughseed Clammyweed (Polanisia dodecandra) and Spiderflower (Cleome hassleriana). Invasive Plant Science and Management 4(1):102-114.
- Meyer, M.H., J. Paul, and N.O. Anderson. 2010. Competitive ability of invasive Miscanthus biotypes with aggressive switchgrass. Biological Invasions 12(11):3809-3816, AND DOI 10.1007/s10530-010-9773-0, published online 22 May 2010.
- Zlesak, D., J. Bradeen, and N.O. Anderson. 2007. The use of AFLP markers to resolve clonal origin and integrity in rose, hydrangea, and lily. Floriculture and Ornamental Biotechnology 1(1):51-60.