UC Davis, Department of Plant Sciences tomato crops grown in the greenhouses
Plant Sciences

Plant-centered research for a resilient future

Federal Funding Matters

Federal research funding turns lab work into real help. Continued funding means faster treatments, cleaner air and water, safer families and stronger businesses. When funding freezes, progress slows and costs rise. Learn more about the many UC Davis research programs dependent on federal funding at the From Labs to Lives website.
From Labs to Lives

Academic Employment Opportunities

Plant Sciences is recruiting for faculty positions:
Associate/Full Professor of Tree Breeding and Genetics
Assistant Professor of Postharvest Horticulture
The department also has a variety of other academic positions available.
See all of the academic job announcements
Michelle from International Agricultural Development

Undergraduate Programs

Plant Sciences offers three diverse majors that prepare students for a broad range of exciting post-graduate jobs or graduate school.

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Plant Sciences graduate student working in the field.

Graduate Programs

Plant Sciences manages two graduate programs and is involved with eight campus graduate groups leading to Ph.D. and master's degrees.

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plant sciences research in a fume hood

Research and Facilities

Our faculty works to advance, evaluate and communicate knowledge of plant sciences from lab to field, rangeland, forests, waterways and beyond.

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Group of visitors at field day

Outreach Programs

We partner with growers, ranchers, consumers and communities to understand regional and global needs and provide research-based solutions.

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Latest News

Out in a field under a blue sky, a man bends down and touches the leaves of a young corn plant

Hosseini, Fatino offer parasite management strategies

  • by Trina Kleist
Scientists Pershang Hosseini and Matt Fatino discuss their research for controlling the parasitic plant Orobanche, commonly called broomrape. Strategies include drawing down the bank of seeds in the soil, adding herbicide to irrigation water and timing transplants going into infested fields.
Man standing on a cliff, behind him is a gray-blue ocean

Tate remembered for leadership in rangeland management

  • by Pam Kan-Rice, UC Agricultural and Natural Resources
Kenneth W. Tate, a professor in the UC Davis Department of Plant Sciences and a UC Cooperative Extension specialist, died unexpectedly on June 5, 2025, at the age 58. He is remembered for his leadership in rangeland science and management and for his mentorship of students and other researchers.
Two men and a woman stand in a field of waist-high, gold-green grasses.

New organic wheat varieties coming from SCOPE

  • by Trina Kleist
New varieties of wheat, oats, barley and alfalfa are available or are being developed to give growers flexibility for their local growing conditions, weather and markets. Plus, early results from on-going trials in wheat under dry conditions were described during the recent UC Davis Small Grains/Alfalfa Field Day at UC Davis.
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