Sydney Everhart, PhD
Department Head
Plant Science and Landscape Architecture
Dr. Sydney Everhart is Associate Professor and Head in the Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture at the University of Connecticut. She holds a PhD in Plant Pathology from the University of Georgia and prior to joining UConn was a faculty member at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Dr. Everhart is considered a national leader in the application of molecular tools for elucidating the biology and epidemiology of fungal plant pathogens within agricultural systems, including current projects focused on diseases of broccoli and Christmas trees in Connecticut. In the last five years, she has co-authored more than 20 papers in high impact journals within the field of plant pathology and over her career has been PI or co-PI on grants totaling more than $7 million. The long-term goal of her research is to develop a better understanding of the biology of fungal plant pathogens, how that relates to disease management, and the emergence of phenotypic traits, such as fungicide resistance. Current research in the Everhart lab includes studies on important fungal plant pathogens, Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, Rhizoctonia zeae, and Alternaria brassicicola, which affect several economically important crops in the United States. In addition to research, Dr. Everhart annually teaches a graduate course in professional development and the graduate seminar course, and she is currently an advisor to three graduate students (two PhD and one MS), in addition to mentoring two postdoctoral scholars.
Dr. Everhart also serves as the leader and administrator for the Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture. This department proudly serves the needs of Connecticut through undergraduate and graduate education, outstanding public engagement programs, and nationally recognized research programs. The research and teaching infrastructure of the department includes wet laboratories, greenhouses, plant growth chambers and tissue culture facilities, design studios, 153-acre research and teaching farm, and the Waxman Conifer Collection. The department is home to the Home & Garden Center, the Plant Diagnostics Clinic, Turfgrass Disease Diagnostic Center, the Soil Nutrient Analysis Laboratory, and the Plant Transformation Facility, which facilitate and support extension and outreach to educators, homeowners, and commercial agriculture. Undergraduate two- and four-year programs include a nationally accredited bachelor’s in landscape architecture, and graduate degrees at the MS and PhD levels. The plant science program is nationally known for a longstanding breeding program on ornamental plants with dozens of patents adopted by the industry, impactful outreach on integrated pest management in the green industry, progressive teaching and research on hemp in controlled environment agriculture, applied research to solve problems in the green industry, and fundamental research in plant biology.
