Carol Wilkinson

• Crop production systems
• STEAM education
• Tobacco breeding and genetics

Carol Wilkinson’s research spans from improving plant disease resistance, to improving cultural practices to enhance sustainability and profitability, to specialty crop production systems.  Her extension program focuses on conducting high impact active learning programs based on agriculture.  These experiential education programs build a broader understanding by students and the community of agriculture, environmental stewardship, food security, soil health, and global sustainability.

My current research focuses on:

Protein hydrolysates (PH) are one of the various classes of biostimulants that have been shown to increase plant growth and productivity when sprayed at low concentrations.  We are collaborating with Dr. Guillaume Pilot to test the effect of protein hydrolysate-based biostimulants on corn and soybean in order to understand which processes are affected by PH and to predict the optimal application rate and best times of application during the growth period.  The goal is to determine if PHs can increase yield under reduced fertilization or in drought stress conditions thereby improving profitability and environmental sustainability.

Mung bean is an important food grain legume for human nutrition due to its nutrient dense seed, liked palatability, and high digestibility.  It is a low input, short duration, high value crop that has the potential to fit very well into crop rotations in Virginia.  We are collaborating with Dr. Ozzie Abaye on evaluating the influence of population density, planting date, mechanical harvesting, and cultivars on mung bean yield and quality.  

Hazelnut is a high value specialty crop that is a good source of protein, vitamins (E, B1, B2, B6 complex), minerals (calcium, potassium, magnesium, selenium), and fats.  The primary obstacle to expansion of hazelnut production in the eastern US is eastern filbert blight.  We are working with Dr. Laban Rutto, Virginia State University, to evaluate new cultivars releases from the hazelnut breeding program at Rutgers University.  The development of better-adapted and disease-resistant hazelnut cultivars could significantly expand the growing region in the US.

• Associate Professor, Southern Piedmont Agricultural Research and Extension Center and School of Plant and Environmental Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blackstone, VA.  (1994 to present)
• Director, Southern Piedmont Agricultural Research and Extension Center, Virginia Tech, Blackstone, VA.  (2004 to 2022)
• Assistant Professor, Southern Piedmont Agricultural Research and Extension Center and Department of Crop and Soil Environmental Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blackstone, VA.  (1988 to 1994)

•  VT CALS (College of Agriculture and Life Sciences) Team Award.  2023.  Agriculture Awareness Days
•  Educator of the Year.  2011.  Piedmont Soil and Water Conservation District

Selected Refereed Publications:

* by lead author denotes graduate student, postdoc, or visiting scientist advised.

Zeng, Y, and CA Wilkinson.  2023.  Evaluation of frogeye leaf spot and Cercospora leaf blight severities and yield performance of maturity group IV soybean cultivars in Nottoway County, Virginia, 2022.  Plant Disease Management Reports 17:CF059

Zeng, Y, and CA Wilkinson.  2023.  Evaluation of frogeye leaf spot and Cercospora leaf blight severities and yield performance of maturity group V soybean cultivars in Nottoway County, Virginia, 2022.  Plant Disease Management Reports 17:CF058

Zeng, Y, and CA Wilkinson.  2023.  Evaluation of frogeye leaf spot and Cercospora leaf blight severities and yield performance of Liberty Link soybean cultivars in Nottoway County, Virginia, 2022.  Plant Disease Management Reports 17:CF057

Mukhopadhyay, B, BH Khairunisa, D Susanti, U Loganathan, CD Teutsch, BT Campbell, D Fiske, CA Wilkinson, and FO Aylward  2022.  Dominant remodeling of cattle rumen microbiome by Schedonorus arundinaceus (Tall Fescue) KY-31 carrying a fungal endophyte. Access Microbiology  4(2):000322, 24 Feb 2022. DOI: 10.1099/acmi.0.000322 PMID: 35355877 PMCID: PMC8941964

Ellis*, MD, JM Hoak*, BW Ellis, JA Brown, TL Sit, CA Wilkinson, TD Reed, and GE Welbaum.  2020.  Quantitative real-time PCR analysis of individual flue-cured tobacco seeds and seedlings reveals seed transmission of Tobacco mosaic virus.  Phytopathology  110:194-205.

Campbell, BT, CA Wilkinson, PJ Shepherd, and P Gray.  2015.  Industry and extension partnership to enhance STEM and agricultural education. Journal of Extension (online) 53(4):article 4TOT6, Available at: http://www.joe.org/joe/2015august/tt6.php

Campbell, BT, CA Wilkinson, and PJ Shepherd.  2014.  Agricultural Awareness Days: Integrating agricultural partnershipsand STEM education. Journal of Extension (online) 52(2):article 2TOT8, Available at: http://www.joe.org/joe/2014april/tt8.php

Wilkinson, CA, TD Reed, and WM Tilson.  2006.  Registration of 'VA 119' tobacco. Crop Science 46:1392-1393.

Balasubramaniam, D, C Wilkinson, K Van Cott, and C Zhang.  2003.  Tobacco protein separation by aqueous two-phase extraction.  Journal of Chromatography A  989:119-129.

Crowder*, BJ, CA Wilkinson, CS Johnson, and JD Eisenback.  2003.  Inheritance of tobacco cyst nematode resistance in flue-cured tobacco. Crop Science 43:1305-1312.

Clarke*, JJ, TD Reed, and CA Wilkinson.  2001/2002.  Development of a greenhouse tobacco seedling performance index. Tobacco Science 45:49-55.

Rideout, SL, CS Johnson, JD Eisenback, and CA Wilkinson.  2000.  Development of selected tobacco cyst nematode isolates on resistant and susceptible cultivars of flue-cured tobacco. Journal of Nematology 32:62-69.

Wilkinson, CA, CS Johnson, and TD Reed.  1999.  Registration of 'VA 355' fire-cured tobacco. Crop Science 39:291.

Wilkinson, CA, CS Johnson, and TD Reed.  1999.  Registration of 'VA 359' fire-cured tobacco. Crop Science 39:291.

Extension Publications:

Reed, TD, Y Zeng, A Rashed, CA Wilkinson, and S Barts.  2024.  2024 Flue-cured tobacco production guide (436-048).  Updated annually

Romelczyk, S., J Reiter, M Broaddus, C Clarke, E Cooper, R Flanagan, B Jones, J Jones, R Jones, F Long, R Longest, M Parrish, S Rutherford, N Sedghi, R Slabach, C Stafford, S Taylor, C Wilkinson, Y Zeng, and D Holshouser.  2022.  2022 Virginia on-farm soybean research (SPES-460NP). Retrieved from https://www.pubs.ext.vt.edu/SPES/spes-460/spes-460.html