Department of Plant, Food, and Environmental Sciences

Faculty of Agriculture

Lord Abbey

Associate Professor, Amenity Horticulture

Abbey_Lord_214x210
Department of Plant, Food, and Environmental Sciences

Email: labbey@dal.ca
Phone: 902-893-6683
Mailing Address: 
Department of Plant, Food, and Environmental Sciences 151-4, Cox Institute, PO Box 550 Truro, NS, B2N 5E3
 
Research Topics:
  • Health-based sustainable food systems and food security
  • vegetable and fruit production
  • domestication of native and wild plants in diversified systems
  • soil nutrient management systems
  • plant response to biotic and abiotic stress factors
  • value addition to compost and compost utilization
  • greenhouse production and technology; and relationship between pre-harvest and postharvest behavior of fresh produce

Education:

  • CAE, Cert. Adult Education, Red River College – 2013
  • Grad. Dip., Pharm. R&D., Toronto Inst. of Pharmaceutical Technology – 2008
  • Ph.D, Plant Science, Cranfield Univ. – 2004
  • MSc, (Sub)Tropical Hort & Crop Science – 1995, Imperial College of Wye, Univ. of London – 1995
  • BSc (Hons) Agric., Crop Science Major, Univ. of Ghana – 1993

Current Rank and Status

Associate Professor, Amenity Horticulture (Tenured)

Award

Mervin Maxwell Award (June 2014): “Awarded in recognition of a commitment to life-long learning and professional development that supports the distinctive ideals of adult learning”. Red River College, MB

Adjunct

1)  Adjunct Professor, Memorial University, Faculty of Science, School of the Science and Environment - Jul 2019 - present

2)  Adjunct Professor, Brandon University, Faculty of Science, Department of Applied Disasters and Emergency Studies  - Jul 2015 - present

Research Interest

Biostimulants and bioproducts

Teaching

1) Greenhouse and Floriculture Crops
2) Specialty Crops
3) Grad Module Food security – concepts, influential factors and measurements
4) Grad Module in Greenhouse Microclimate Impact on Plant Growth
5) Directed Studies Environmental Sciences

Major Sources of Research Funding and Awards

1) NSERC CRD
2) NSERC Engage
2) NSDA Research Acceleration Program
3) Divert NS
4) IRAP-NRC

International Working Group

1) Uganda Skills Development Project – Bukalasa Agricultural College
Twinning Project funded by World Bank Aug 2018

2) Agricultural Transformation Through Stronger Vocational Education
(ATTSVE) Project, Ethiopia funded by the Government of Canada Aug 2017–present

Supervision of Postdoctoral Fellow and their Research Portfolio

1)      Dr. Lokanadha Gunupuru: Novel indoor technology for urban food production (NSERC funded: November 2018 – October 2020)

2)      Dr. Mercy Ijenyo: Integrated nutrient management for haskap (NSERC funded: May 2019 – April 2021)

Supervision of PhD Students and their Research Projects

1) Roksana Saleh: Vermicast amendment and supplementary light effects on plant phytochemistry (Supervisor; registered in May 2019; in progress)

2) Raphael Ofoe: Morpho-physiological and genetic responses of haskap to integrated nutrient management (Supervisor; registered in January 2020; in progress)

Supervision of MSc Students and their Research Projects

(1) Dengge Qin: Sorption properties of biochar and plant growth response to application rate (Supervisor; Co-supervision by Dr. Sophia He; registered in September 2019; in progress)

(2) Vera Amo Larbi: Rate and frequency of application of pyroligneous acid effects on haskap plant growth and berry fruit quality (Supervisor; registered in May 2019; in progress)

(3) Yuhang He: Comparison of pyroligneous acid from three different biomass and their efficacy on plants growth and metabolites (Supervisor; Co-supervision by Dr. Bishnu Acharya; registered in May 2019; in progress)

(4) Suwen Lin: Nutrients mineralization and bioavailability in vermicast-Trichoderma-sawdust mixed media (Supervisor; registered September 2018; in progress)

(5)    Matt MacNeil: Sex ratio, fruit yield and postharvest quality of cucumber as affected by pyroligneous acid (Supervisor; registered September 2017; in progress)

(6)    Asunni Alex Ojo: Agroeconomic evaluation of CQA-tested green bin compost (Co-supervisor; Primary supervision by Dr. Balfour Spence, Brandon University; registered September 2018; in progress)

(7)    Nishchitha Hemmige Natesh: Growing environment effect on nutritional and anti-nutritional factors in selected ethnic crops grown in Nova Scotia (Primary supervisor; co-supervision by Dr. Samuel Asiedu; registered May 2017; completed in November 2019)

(8)    Zhixu Rao: Microwave irradiation treatment of compost and effects on growth and chemical composition of kale (Supervisor; March 2017; completed November 2018)

(9)    Sanjamveer Singh Vehniwal: Formulation of compost tea with organic additives for use as vase solution (Supervisor; registered September 2016; completed December 2018)

(10)  Adedayo Leke-Aladekoba: Isolation, physicochemical characterization and antioxidant properties of chitin from fungi and insects (Co-supervisor; Primary supervision by Dr. Beth Mason, CBU; registered September 2017; completed November 2018)

(11)  Ebenezer Oluwaseun Esan: Exploring the potential of native microbial consortium and enzymes for biodegradation of plastic wastes in compost (Primary supervisor; co-supervision by Dr. Svetlana Yurgel; registered May 2016; completed August 2018)

(12)  Ekene Mark-Anthony Iheshiulo:  Haskap response to soil nutrient supplementation, and compost and irrigation applications (Co-supervisor; Primary supervision by Dr. Andrew Hammermeister; registered January 2016; completed March 2018)

(13) Elena Benic:  Variable rates of rock powder and vermicast effects on potted-kale production (Advanced Diploma in Sustainable Food Systems; Supervisor; registered in September 2014; completed April  2015)

Most Recent Undergraduate and Honors Students and their Research Projects

(1)    Sakthi Sundaram Durai: Evaluation of different accession of tropical vegetables during different sowing periods (Supervisor; BSc (Honours); registered Jan 2020; in progress)

(2)      Abhinand Mohanakumaran Nair Sreekala: Phosphorus and potassium fertilization requirements of haskap (Lonicera caerulea) (Supervisor; BSc (Honours); registered Jan 2020; in progress)

(3)      Shuqi Cui: Effect of nitrogen fertilizer application on haskap (Lonicera caerulea) plant growth and berry yield (Supervisor; BSc (Honours); registered Jan 2020; in progress)

(4)      Tongxin Ye: effect of different levels of compost on lead-spiked soilless mix: proposal paper (Supervisor; BSc (Honours); registered Jan 2020; in progress)

(5)      Mohan Zhou: Combined effect of pyroligneous acid and chitosan on morpho-physiology and phytochemicals in kale (Brassica oleracea var. acephala) (Supervisor; BSc (Honours); registered Jan 2019; completed)

(6)      Dengge Qin: Shallots (Allium ascalonicum) response to two different seaweed extracts. (Supervisor; BSc (Honours); registered Jan 2019; completed)

(7)      Tim Marcolm: Pyroligneous acid and municipal solid waste compost effect on strawberry growth and fruit yield. (Supervisor; BSc (Honours); registered Sept 2018; completed)

(8)      Jingyu Zhan: Effect of spent mushroom compost on the growth of young plants of kale. (Supervisor; BSc (Honours); registered Sept 2017; completed)

(9)      Li Wen: Leaf and root damages effects on onion (Allium cepa L.) plant growth and development (Supervisor; BSc; registered in Feb 2016; completed)

(10)  Hanchu Yu: Vermicasts quality affected by microwave irradiation power level and exposure time (Supervisor; registered in Feb 2017; completed)

(11)  Zhujun Qiu: Sulphur and compost application effects on onion plant growth and bulb yield (Supervisor; registered in Feb 2017; completed)

(12)  Zhiwei Zheng: Growth and physiological activities of Jamaican thyme (Plectranthus amboinicus) during recovering from nutrient stress (Supervisor; registered in Feb 2017; completed)

(13)  Jinsheng Cai: Nutrient release profile of biochar charged with compost tea, and its efficacy on plant growth (Supervisor; registered in Feb 2017; completed)

(14)  Niran Foster: Nitrogen and sulphur effect on onion plant growth and bulb rot development (Supervisor; registered in October 2017; completed)

(15)  Qihuan (Sophie) Zhou: Effect of vermicast and rock powder pretreatment on rooting of stem cuttings (Supervisor; registered in November 2017; completed)

(16)  Yuhang He: Seed germination, plant growth of pyroligneous acid primed Swiss chard (Supervisor; registered in November 2017; completed)

(17)  Le Wang: Effect of rock dust and vermicasts application on dahlia plant growth, tuber yield and flower production (Primary supervisor; co-supervised by Scott Veitch; registered in Feb 2016; completed)

(18)  Qingqing Zhan: Effect of photoperiod on growth and flower production on two varieties of dahlia (Primary supervisor; co-supervised by Scott Veitch; registered in Feb 2016; completed)

(19)  Shixin Cai: Microwave irradiation effect on vermicasts quality and growth of dahlia (Primary supervisor; co-supervised by Scott Veitch; registered in Feb 2016; completed)

(20)  Bangwei Zhang: Comparative studies on growing medium amendments effects on growth, secondary metabolites and anti-streptococcal activity of two Plectranthus spp. (Primary supervisor; co-supervised by Dr. Vasantha Rupasinghe; registered in Nov 2015; completed)