Koy Chandler is a PhD student being co-advised by both Dr. Mark Pavek and Dr. Jacob Blauer. Agricultural research interests me because I am motivated to help growers find success and answer troubling questions. My research is focused on two different aspects and projects to improve in season plant health and post-harvest quality of potatoes. To do so, my focus is to find applicable solutions that growers can easily apply to their operations.
One of my projects is focused on fertility management, looking into the rates, formulations, and interactions of calcium and potassium fertilizers to optimize nutrient inputs to achieve maximum outputs in both quality and quantity. These fertilizers are thought to improve skin and cell strength for tubers that can reduce losses in storage. It is important for growers, both economically and environmentally, to know how to maximize profits, while also reducing extra inputs on potatoes. As part of this project, I have taken water samples from all the major canals across the Columbia Basin project to understand nutrient concentrations and differences across the major potato growing region in the state. This can help us understand what growers might be putting on with irrigation over the growing season.
My other main project is centered on finding solutions to help accelerate and maximize wound healing capabilities for growers. As such, I am investigating novel products and methods that improve wound healing capabilities of potatoes. Wound healing is an important aspect from preplant to postharvest. Preplant is important for cut seed to increase seed health and productivity and postharvest can help to recover from mechanical damage during harvest, transportation and storage. Wound healing helps to reduce rot and water loss in storage. Discovering new products and methods that accelerate wound healing will reduce economic losses for growers.
Koy’s interest in potato research sparked while working over the summers with Dr. Jeff Miller at Miller Research during his undergraduate degree. He then went on to do get his master’s in plant pathology at WSU in Dr. Cynthia Gleason’s lab focused on nematode research. Outside of potatoes, Koy enjoys spending time with his wife and daughter that keep him plenty busy. He also enjoys watching and playing sports in his free time.
