GSR Profile: Grant Johnson – UCCE advisor in Orange and Los Angeles counties

Grant Johnson is the advisor for urban agriculture technology, based at UC Cooperative Extension’s South Coast Research and Extension Center in Irvine, Calif. His specialties include fertilization, irrigation and water recycling in nurseries. Nursery and floral production account for 7.5 percent of California’s farm sales -- $3.5 billion in 2020, according to state figures.

Q: How did the GSR award help you?  Being a GSR awardee sustained my academic journey, adding to and making stretch the support from additional fellowships and grants. It was especially helpful throughout 2020. It also opened up doors to a community of scholars and experts that I am actively working with today. In my case, the GSR funds fulfilled the concept of UC ANR’s mission involving sustainability and outreach to improve the lives of Californians.

Before becoming a grad student, I had worked for UC ANR as a staff research associate, which inspired me to continue my education to become a UCCE advisor. As a student, I could look back at those experiences and make connections about how research principles apply to extension efforts.

I am beyond appreciative that I could take classes supported by this GSR funding. It gave me the confidence and strengthened my motivation to advance plant sciences after graduation.

Q: How did this research training prepare you for your current role? Being a GSR was the best training to become a UCCE advisor. The education and hands-on application of research I did while supported by the GSR award applies directly to what I am doing now at the South Coast Research and Extension Center. Understanding research articles, collaborating with peers, applying scientific knowledge to solve tangible agricultural problems, and working together with growers is exactly what this job requires.

Q: What was your research during your graduate studies at UC Davis? My familiarity with the effectiveness of slow sand filtration as staff researcher for UC ANR guided my later research question. I explored whether the nursery industry could use SSF columns to remove the commonly applied plant growth regulator, paclobutrazol, from nursery runoff water using this low-cost method.

Q: What outreach and extension research did you undertake as part of your studies? In the course of discussing my research, I was able to drive conversations and build relationships with various nurseries. This gave me a better understanding of their needs and what resources are most important for their production. I also participated in outreach efforts by attending and volunteering at events such as the UC Landscape Plant Irrigation Trials, where I interacted with landscape professionals.

Being a teaching assistant was also a form of outreach and extension, because I communicated research principles to students who, I hope, will apply what they have learned to their future careers in related fields.

Seeds that bear much fruit

Thanks to the James Monroe McDonald Endowment, the Department of Plant Sciences has been able to support dozens of our very best graduate students - scientists-in-training such as Grant Johnson - with awards that supplement their finances. Graduate Student Research awards provide $20,000 yearly for two years to master's degree students, and for four years to doctoral students.

Like Johnson, many go on to careers in UC Cooperative Extension. The McDonald Endowment, administered by UC Agricultural and Natural Resources, provides these funds so that our students can translate research into action, making an impact on California and beyond.

In this series, we highlight a few of our GSR award recipients who have gone on to careers supporting healthy food systems, healthy environments, healthy communities and healthy Californians.

Related links

Apply for a GSR award.

The James Monroe McDonald Endowment, administered by UC ANR, funds our GSR awards.