Whole genome analyses often identify genes likely to be important for understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying host-microbe interactions.

All of the world's domesticated crop plants were once wild, and survived in complex ecological landscapes. Which geographic regions are these crop plants from? What are the local biotic communities and abiotic conditions that shaped the crop plant functional traits we depend on today?

Often, we are familiar with few commercial varieties of any particular crop. However, there are often countless more uncommercialized varieties, maintained in home gardens and small plantings. What are these lesser known varieties? What are the herbivores, pollinators, natural enemies and microbes that locally adapted crops interact with?

Plants produce a dazzling diversity of chemical compounds. These blends of compounds can contain detailed information about identity and physiological status of the emitting plant.

Herbarium specimens are used as physical records of which plant species are present in particular geographic locations, and at what dates. However, herbarium specimens also contain a wealth of undocumented data about ecological interactions. I am using herbarium specimens to understand patterns of insect and microbial associations across time and space