The Person Behind the Cite

Field Pathology with Purpose

I study plant diseases where they unfold, in the field. Through research, teaching, diagnostics, and collaboration, I help students, producers, and agricultural partners understand disease risk and make more informed management decisions.

Who am I

I am a curious person. I am always asking questions, trying to understand how things work, and thinking about how ideas can be turned into practical solutions. At school, I loved biology and history, a lot. Biology helped me understand living systems, while history taught me to think about context, change, people, and the stories behind events.

In many ways, those interests still shape how I work today.

I am a field plant pathologist and epidemiologist at the University of the Free State. My work focuses on plant diseases in agricultural systems, with particular interests in disease surveillance, field-based epidemiology, crop protection, diagnostics, fungicide efficacy, and practical disease management.

But if I am honest, plant pathology is much more than a job to me.

I genuinely love what I do - it is my special interest! I enjoy being in fields, talking to producers and agronomists, asking questions, and trying to understand why diseases occur when and where they do. Many of the research questions I pursue do not begin in a laboratory but in conversations, observations, and challenges encountered in real production systems.

I am fascinated by the intersection of biology, agriculture, people, and decision-making. Plant diseases are rarely just about pathogens. They are about risk, uncertainty, economics, weather, management decisions, and ultimately the people whose livelihoods depend on healthy crops. That complexity is what continues to draw me to epidemiology.

Over time, I have realised that my personal identity has become closely intertwined with my professional identity. Being a plant pathologist is not simply what I do; it has become part of who I am. It shapes how I think, how I ask questions, how I engage with people, and how I see the world around me.

How I work

I believe plant pathology should be scientifically rigorous, practically useful, and connected to the people it serves. My work is grounded in field observation, disease assessment, collaborative research, and clear communication.

Much of my work happens at the interface between research and practice. I enjoy working with students, producers, industry partners, and fellow researchers to connect field observations with scientific evidence and agricultural decision-making. I am particularly passionate about research that is useful, research that helps someone make a better decision, understand a problem more clearly, or manage disease more effectively.

I work with enthusiasm and energy, and I often find myself challenging the status quo, especially when I believe something can be made clearer, more useful, or more meaningful. I should probably be publishing more peer-reviewed papers, but I also genuinely love writing popular articles that translate plant pathology into accessible, practical information.

I also love being creative. Designing beautiful extension materials, presentations, teaching resources, and research communication tools is part of how I think and work. For me, making information visually clear and engaging is not just decoration, it is part of good communication.

I am definitely a hard worker, and I value effort, commitment, and follow-through. I also know that I sometimes expect others to work with the same intensity that I do, and this is something I am learning to hold with more grace, because people work, grow, and contribute in different ways.

I am especially committed to helping students and emerging researchers develop confidence, ask better questions, interpret evidence carefully, and grow into thoughtful contributors to agricultural science.

My academic home at UFS

I am based in the Department of Plant Sciences in the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences at the University of the Free State. This is the academic environment from which I teach, supervise, conduct field-based research, and contribute to plant pathology, epidemiology, crop protection, and agricultural engagement.

The Department of Plant Sciences brings together plant-related teaching and research across Botany, Plant Breeding, and Plant Pathology. My academic work is situated within the Plant Pathology division.

Beyond my academic role

Outside of my academic work, I am married to Christopher, who is also a researcher at the University of the Free State and an avid rock and surf fisherman. We share our home with two Boston Terriers, Olive and Raggie, who bring a lot of joy, personality, and a healthy dose of chaos to our daily lives.

I also enjoy making things with my hands. I love macramé and even had a season of life where I sold some of my pieces at a local market. More recently, I have started learning watercolour painting as a way of slowing down, being creative, and enjoying the process of making something simply for the joy of it.

I collect seashells too, and I enjoy organising, categorising, and creating art with them. Perhaps unsurprisingly, even my hobbies often involve observing patterns, noticing small details, and arranging beautiful things in meaningful ways. Collecting shells has also become a special way for me to share in Christopher’s love for the ocean and our time together at the coast. While he enjoys the challenge of rock and surf fishing, I am often searching the shoreline for interesting shells, each one carrying a memory of a place, a walk, or a day spent by the sea together.

I also love baking and cooking. I enjoy the creativity of making something beautiful and tasty, and I even once made a wedding cake for a friend. There is something deeply satisfying about taking simple ingredients and turning them into something that can be shared and enjoyed. I also love to travel, which is, of course, one of the blessings of academia. Through travel, I have had the opportunity to experience amazing cuisine from around the world, learn new recipes, and bring some of those flavours and ideas back into my own kitchen.

I also love reading, across many different kinds of books. Some of these thoughts, books, creative interests, and reflections on life beyond academic work may find their way into the reflections section of this website.

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