News

Capping off a Great Summer!

Patrick Marty spent the summer between his junior and senior years of high school doing an internship in our lab. He helped with a lot of lab work as part of the organic grains soil health project, and learned a lot of new techniques and how a research lab operates. The end of the internship program was a poster session with his fellow high school scholars. Patrick’s poster was a hit, and we can’t wait to see what he does in the future!

Congratulations Yanyu!

Yanyu was selected for the Richard D. Powell Memorial Scholarship. This scholarship is awarded to a graduate student in soil fertility. Congratulations!

Congratulations!

Ella was selected for a Merlin E. Silverthorn scholarship through the College of Letters & Sciences! This great scholarship provides one-time awards to high-achieving students who are pursuing majors in the physical sciences, the biological sciences, computer sciences, or mathematics. We’re proud of you, Ella!

(05/09/2025)

A New Master!

Congratulations to Josh, who has successfully completed his Master’s! Today, he gave a great MS seminar entitled “Evaluating the effects of solid manure products on soil nitrogen dynamics in a silage corn system.  Josh will rejoin the Zhu-Barker Lab as a PhD student in 2025 Spring. Bravo, Josh!

(12/19/2024)

Welcome!

Confucius once said, “Is it not a joy to have friends coming from afar?” Today, we are delighted to welcome Peidan, a visiting PhD student from Northwest A&F University in China. With her expertise in Grassland Science, Peidan joins us for a six-month stay in the Zhu-Barker lab. We are excited about the fresh perspectives and innovative ideas she will contribute during her time with us!

(12/16/2024)

 

Congratulations!

Yanyu won 2nd place in graduate student competitions for the Nutrients and Environmental Quality community during the 2024 ASA, CSSA, SSSA International Annual Meeting in San Antonio. His presentation was titled Crossroad of Nitrate: How Deep Can Climate-Smart Practices Influence Denitrification in Soils? Well-done, Yanyu!

(11/16/2024)

Let’s go to Devil’s Lake!

Here comes fall again, and this year, Zhu-Barker Lab had a great time hiking and having a picnic at Devil’s Lake State Park with Dr. Huang’s lab! Do you know that the formation of Devil’s Lake is related to glacier movement? Free lectures from the two PIs of the Department of Soil & Environmental Sciences!

(10/05/2024)

Photo of Dr. Xia Zhu-Barker in front of the White House

Congratulations!

Dr. Xia Zhu-Barker’s research group has received a USDA NIFA grant through the Organic Agriculture Program. The title of the project is Developing Guidelines For Organic Grain Growers To Manage Soil Health And Mitigate Climate Change Impacts. The award amount is $997,301. Information can be found here. It was among 30 projects sharing NIFA’s $50.5 million investment. Now we have new positions for cool people to join us!

(09/02/2024)

Welcome!

Gryffindor? No…Ravenclaw? No…Slytherin? No… Hufflepuff! A new badger has come! Mitchell Wodrich has started his MS program in Soil Science while working as an RA in Zhu-Barker Lab. We Got Wodrich!

(08/26/2024)

Two scholarships received!

Yanyu was recently selected to receive two CALS scholarships:  Henry Steenbock Scholarship and Albert J. & Adelaide E. Riker Scholarship.  Yanyu was selected from an extremely strong field of candidates.  Each provides $2,000 in funding.  Congratulations, Yanyu!

(07/30/2024)

Grant awarded!

Josh was jointly awarded an O.N. Allen Soil and Environmental Microbiology Small Grant for $3,452 with Dana Johnson from the Whitman Lab. The proposal’s title is, “Effect of varying temperatures and durations of freeze on soil N2O emissions and the relative contributions of nitrifying and denitrifying bacteria. Congratulations, Josh!

(04/01/2024)

Fall is coming…with apple picking!

What do you think of the fall in Wisconsin? Colorful forests or sweet pumpkins? The answer from Zhu-Barker lab is an apple-picking adventure at Stutter’s Ridge Farm with the Freedman lab! In Wisconsin, it’s definitely a “thing to do”! And be careful with the Camero apple, cause it tastes like “Perfume”(by Dr. Zhu-Barker)/ “Air freshener” (by Yanyu) / “A car” (by Vincent).

(10/22/2023)

Agronomy-Soils Field Day!

On Aug 30, Zhu-Barker lab went to UW-Arlington Agricultural Research Station to give an outreach to the locals! You can find Dr. Zhu-Barker and Josh Mirabella giving a concise presentation named Assessing manure-based products’ impact on silage corn nitrogen dynamics and environmental footprint. at stop 4. A good practice of the Wisconsin Idea!

(09/01/2023)