Planting Science - Members: View: Stephen Stresow

Stephen Stresow

Profile

Profile

Time Zone

Eastern
Organization

Michigan State University
Employment Status

University / College Graduate Student
Role

Scientist Mentor: I will mentor teams of students online
Research Interests (300 words)

We all know that eating vegetables is good for you, so I find it a little ironic that the ways we grow vegetables is not always good for the soil! Plants need nutrients just like us, which is why we use fertilizer! Temperature, water (rainfall), microorganisms living in the soil, and other factors affect how much nutrients actually become available for plants to use. Instead of using human-made fertilizers, I am researching how we can use things like compost, manure (animal poop), and cover crops (other plants) to provide nutrients to vegetables when they are growing. I hope I can help farmers implement more sustainable growing practices so that we can have healthy soil, which leads to healthy plants, and then healthy people!
Profile Question 1

What is your favorite plant? Why?
Answer the question you selected for profile question 1 here (300 words):

My favorite plant is the chocolate daisy (Berlandiera lyrata). This wildflower is native to the Chihuahuan Desert where I grew up. The pretty yellow flowers look similar to other daisies, but when you take a sniff of them they really do smell like chocolate! Unfortunately, you cannot make chocolate out of them–you need a cacao tree (Theobroma cacao) for that and they only grow in tropical areas. Lotsof people think that nothing grows in the desert, but that is not true! There are a lot of really unique plants that have adaptations to help them survive. Chocolate daisy is a great example of what can happen when we take the time to learn more about the plants around us. When you first look at it, you might not think much of it. I know visitors to my garden are always pleasantly surprised when I share this plant with them. It takes multiple senses to fully appreciate the plant. As a gardener, I appreciate that chocolate daisy is a native plant. Native plants often use less water and can survive on their own with little care, which is super important in the desert! Chocolate daisy is also a perennial. This means that the plant will survive year after year (like a tree) and does not have to be replanted.
Profile Question 2

When and why did you decide to go into a science career?
Answer the question you selected for profile question 2 here (300 words):

I took gardening classes when I was in high school, which was when I realized that plants could be more than just a hobby. Each week we had different presenters who all had careers working with plants. This gave me the confidence to really pursue plants because I saw that I could still pay the bills! I had the opportunity to be involved with research when I was in high school. At some point, I think I passed a threshold where I knew I did not want plants to just be something I worked with in my free time. When you are a scientist doing research for a university, you have access to laboratories and fancy equipment that can help you answer questions that you did not know you even had! Every time you answer a question, you discover a lot more. I was lucky to realize this about myself in high school. As I thought about what I wanted to study in college and have as a career, I could not imagine doing anything else. I literally get paid to read about, write about, think about, and grow plants! A big part of my job is talking to other people about how awesome plants are, which would be a lot harder if I was trying to do all of this on top of another job. There are also lots of challenges that younger generations are going to have to solve. Pursuing a career in science is really rewarding for me because I am able to spend my professional life working towards solutions. Science combines having fun with helping others, so even though it can be really difficult at times, I am thankful for the opportunities it has provided.
Profile Question 3

Do you have advice for students about preparing for a science career?
Answer the question you selected for profile question 3 here (300 words):

Science is all around us and we use it everyday. There are lots of community or citizen science that individuals can be part of and are a great way to explore things you are passionate about and connect with others. No two careers in science will be the same and you might not ever interact with people whose job is to do science full time– I know I did not. This can make it really intimidating to think about pursuing a career in science. Don’t worry! Almost every scientist was in the same position. I recommend finding people who do things you find interesting and reaching out to them about their journey through science. Many of them are happy to share their experiences. I also recommend exploring things you are interested in and knowing that it is 100% okay to change your interests–science is all about discovery! There are a lot of great books, podcasts (I really like ologies by Alie Ward), and videos that can helpyou explore what you love! Many of the scientists I know got there by learning as much as they could about what they were passionate about, which is a lot of fun! We need scientists in every field, so there is definitely a place for you and your interests. I think it is important to remember that there is science as a “practice” and that there is science as a “job.” We can all use the scientific method to help us solve problems, no matter what we do as a career. This helps us better understand (and hopefully appreciate) the world around us. Appreciating science does not mean that you have to become a scientist as a job if that does not interest you.
Preferred Student Level(s)

Undergraduate Students
Elementary School Students (5th grade)
Middle School Students (Grades 6,7,8)
High School Students (Grades 9,10,11,12)
In addition to English, I am comfortable communicating with students in the following languages:

None of the Above
Capacity: How many teams at a time are you comfortable working with?

2
Receive Email Updates

Yes, send me emails

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