News & Perspectives
Agronomic Science Foundation
Legacy of a Mentor
H
ave you been lucky enough to
have a mentor in your life? More
than just answering the occasional question or providing ad hoc help,
mentoring is about an ongoing relationship of learning, dialogue, and challenge.
I’d like to tell you about three mentors
who have made a difference in my life.
Alexander Barton
Director of Business
Development
James Coors: Thinking
Methodically to Keep
Projects Moving
A scientist at the
core, Dr. James Co608-273-8095
ors taught me how
to think methodically
by
using
predictable
measurements
Echoing the story of the original mentor, which comes
that can keep a project moving within a
from Greek mythology, Fran Katz, Dr. James Coors, and Dr.
multifaceted organization. A past chair of
John Havlin have helped to shape the person I have become
the Agronomic Science Foundation and
by imparting their wisdom and sharing their knowledge
past president of CSSA, he has worked
with me. A friend of Odysseus, Mentor was put in charge of
James Coors
with the International Center for Maize
his son, Telemachus, and his palace when Odysseus left for
and Wheat Improvement in Mexico
the Trojan War. Later, Athena disguised as Mentor encourand other corn-breeding programs in South America. Dr.
aged Telemachus to go abroad and find out what happened
Coors, professor emeritus at the University of Wisconsin
to his father. Because of Mentor’s relationship with Telema(UW)–Madison, was a member of UW’s Plant Breeding and
chus and the disguised Athena’s encouragement and practiPlant Genetics program, where he worked on the developcal plans for dealing with personal dilemmas, the “mentor”
ment of selection methods for complex traits in corn. He
has been adopted in English as a term meaning someone
has developed and released novel corn germplasm as part
who imparts wisdom to and shares knowledge with a less
of a research program that includes studies of long-term
experienced colleague.
selection and the domestication of corn. His legacy will live
on in the Golden Opportunity Scholars Institute, which
Fran Katz: Surviving in an Ever-Changing
he was so instrumental in helping to establish. Fostering
the very best of our current students to pursue a successEnvironment
ful career path in agronomy and crop and soil sciences, the
The legacy of Fran Katz, who passed
institute also cultivates networks so necessary to sustaining
away in September, will live on in
the profession.
me and many others whose lives she
touched. Fran taught me how to survive in an ever-changing environment.
John Havlin: Facing the Unknown
Working in the food industry for 55
From Dr. John Havlin, current chair of
years, she knew the heads of most food
Agronomic Science Foundation, I learned
companies. After retiring as vice presinot to fear the unknown when I’m going
dent of research at American Maize (now
into a situation that may be fraught with
Fran
Katz
Cargill), she was president of Superior
unknowns. In contrast to many of his
Intelligence Publications and director
peers, this professor in the Department
of publications for both the Institute of Food Technologists
of Soil Science at North Carolina State
(IFT) and ASA, CSSA, and SSSA. I got to know her at IFT,
University was not raised on a farm,
and so when she began working with the Societies, she
but spent his youth in Chicago. I believe
brought me in to sell advertising. Just being with her on the
John Havlin
this gave him “street smarts” to assess
many road trips we took together allowed her to teach by
the dynamics of a situation enough to
example on what it takes to survive when you’re competreact quickly. Success in science led him to an interest in
ing against other organizations. A survivor of both polio
agriculture that was fostered by mentors early in his career,
and cancer, she took life one day at a time, always using her
and now he is passing that legacy onto the next generation
amazing ability to solve problems and make things hapof agronomists and crop and soil scientists. His areas of
pen. Always down to earth, this MENSA member was even
expertise are in soil fertility and chemistry, soil manageproud to teach high school students how to grow flowers on
ment, remote sensing, and viticulture. A contributor to the
an Indiana flower farm.
children’s book titled Soils! Get the Inside Scoop, Dr. Havlin
doi:10.2134/csa2013-58-11-7
20 CSA News
[email protected]
continued on page 24
November 2013
November 2013
CSA News 21
News & Perspectives
Caucuses
continued from page 24
sues such as wastewater management and sustainable
architecture have a dramatic impact on urban areas and are
greatly affected by soil science.
For example, this past July, the CSC worked with the
Congressional Urban Caucus to co-sponsor a briefing1 on
the benefits of converting brownfields into urban gardens
and the challenges associated with these transformations.
A panel of guest speakers discussed the social, economic,
environmental, and health benefits that urban gardens can
bring to underserved communities. It was a highly successful briefing, prompting high attendance and considerable
discussion even after the briefing ended.
On the other end of the spectrum, in September, the
CSC co-sponsored another briefing1 with the Congressional
Western Caucus on land reclamation after coal, oil, and gas
development. The panelists discussed how modern mining
and drilling practices include procedures to ensure that the
impacts to the environment will be held to a minimum and
that land will be returned to a condition where its productivity and capabilities are similar to those that existed prior
to mining or drilling.
During tight budget times, it is especially important for
advocacy groups to have a platform that can highlight their
issues. ASA, CSSA, and SSSA will continue to work with
the Congressional Soils Caucus to inform Congress about
the importance and impacts of soil science.
1
See www.soils.org/science-policy/caucus/briefings
Legacy of a Mentor continued from page 20
also is the author of the internationally recognized textbook
Soil Fertility and Fertilizers. He was instrumental in fundraising for the “Dig It! The Secrets of Soil,” exhibit developed
by the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History
and supported by SSSA as its founding sponsor.
These are three more of the personal stories about how
some of the trustees are sharing themselves with future
agronomists, crop scientists, and soil scientists. These leaders are making a difference in our sciences and professions
by establishing scholarships and grants, creating service
travel for talent development purposes, and so much more
that will live on long after they have passed from this earth.
Are you ready to impart your wisdom and share your
knowledge with a less experienced colleague? Chances
are you can think of people in your life who helped you
reach the level of success you now have. Take a moment
to imagine what your legacy could be, and make the first
step to “pay-it-forward.” If you need help getting started,
please contact me today at [email protected] or
608-273-8095.
24 CSA News
Letter to the Editor
Biochar and Phosphate Adsorption
Dear Editor:
I read your biochar article in CSA News magazine (see
www.soils.org/publications/csa/articles/58/9/4) with
interest but was particularly hit by your statement, “Biochar
... also appears able to adsorb phosphate, an anion (no one
knows why).” You have just not asked the right people.
To give you a bit of background, early in my career, I
did some work on phosphate sorption by soil. At one point,
after a sorption study was completed, I allowed the soil
to stand for a an equilibration period and then repeated
the study. I was intrigued to find that the soil would sorb
nearly as much the second time as in the initial study. Over
the years, phosphate studies had established that phosphate
availability to plants gradually decreases with time after
addition to the soil. I thought about these observations for a
long time and finally came up with the answer. I also developed a research protocol to test my theory, but by this time,
soil research had moved on and no one was any longer
interested in funding phosphorus research.
I believe the following sequence occurs when phosphate
is added to soil.
1. The phosphate is initially sorbed by organic matter in
the soil by attraction to aluminum (and/or iron) ions on the
organic surfaces and remains available to plant roots.
2. The solution phosphate in equilibrium with the
organo-Al-PO4 is now out of equilibrium with inorganic
aluminum phosphate forms within the soil, so with time,
the Al-PO4 ions desorb from the organic surface and reprecipitate as a less soluble mineral form. This leaves hydrogen
ions behind on the organic surfaces.
3. The organic surface sites are now occupied by hydrogen ions, which means the system is out of Al equilibrium
and the soil solution is slightly more acid. This results in the
dissolution of inorganic aluminum oxide/hydroxide and
refilling the original organo-Al surface sites, ready to react
with more phosphate.
In your case, it is highly probable that the char does contain sites to which Al and Fe are attracted, and if these are
not initially present, they would surely saturate them once
the char is placed in contact with the soil. I suspect the char
will also tend to sequester the phosphate, so the organoAl-PO4 is not really in equilibrium with the soil solution,
remaining available to plants over a much longer period of
time than it would in a natural soil situation.
—Robert Harter, Professor Emeritus,
University of New Hampshire, Manchester
doi:10.2134/csa2013-58-11-9
November 2013