This summer we had field locations in Courtland, MN; Glyndon, MN; Galchutt, ND; Mandan, ND; and Oakes, ND. The field locations made up about 25 acres that we completed our research on. Some of the highlights from our summer were:
We could not have accomplished all this without help from our interns. We have enjoyed having this group for the summer and teaching them about sunflower research. They were excellent both professionally and socially. Our lab appreciates employees who are both outstanding workers and maintain an enjoyable work culture. This group was both and made this summer one of the most successful at the Hulke Lab. Below are the internship projects that were completed and some pictures of our summer.
Greta Rockstad:
Hi! My name is Greta Rockstad, and I am currently a sophomore at the University of Minnesota studying genetics. I interned in the Hulke lab last summer, and I am very grateful I had the opportunity to do so. I got a chance to expand my interests in plant breeding with a project on silphium, a perennial species and sunflower relative the Hulke Lab is working to domesticate for its oil quality and drought resistance potential. My project involved designing and carrying out a germination screen with a variety of different treatments to find the most effective way to germinate silphium seeds. Beyond that, I enjoyed getting to work both outside and inside, as well as learning more about all the things a breeder has to consider when developing or improving lines. It was also neat to see the collaboration that happened between the entomology, pathology, and breeding labs. My favorite part of the summer internship was getting to meet so many awesome people! I formed great friendships working alongside the other lab members, and we were able to have a productive summer while still having plenty of fun. The Hulke Lab is a wonderful place to work, and I’m glad I got to be a member if even for a short time.
Keegan Jones:
I’m Keegan Jones, a junior at North Dakota State University, and my major is Mechanical Engineering. I never thought that I would end up in an agricultural research position, and the story of becoming a biological sciences aid is too bizarre to tell here, but what I will say is that I really enjoyed working as an intern for the Hulke Lab! In my time at the Hulke lab, I have participated in every step of their research process, and I have learned the many aspects and logistics of running a large scale breeding program. My boss, Brent Hulke, and my most excellent coworkers (Brady, Mike, and Brian), have taught me how and why certain line crosses are made, how crop planting is actually done, the importance of accurate field notes, the process of evaluating the resulting sunflower seeds for oil content and quality, to dealing with unforeseen mechanical issues of our equipment on the fly. I have been very fortunate for Brent going out of his way to give me small engineering projects throughout my time at the lab, which has allowed me to gain valuable experience related to my degree. I developed a seed crusher, which is used for prepping seeds for our gas chromatography tests, I designed a simple solution to lay out four reels of drip tape at the same time, and I’ve implemented a series of brushes on our combine to capture elusive seed when harvesting. The science is awesome, the working environment is always changing, and the people are the best! I know this all sounds rather cheesy, but this has been a totally radical place to work.
Jordan Nelson:
I’m Jordan Nelson, a Senior at North Dakota State University majoring in Agriculture Economics and minoring in Crop and Weed Science. I have been interning in the Hulke Lab for about one year now and it has honestly been fantastic. I was somewhat intimidated right away when I accepted the position of biological research aid, but the entire lab was welcoming and quickly made me feel comfortable. Being able to work both outside and inside was a very unique characteristic that I was very grateful for. But overall, the people of the lab have definitely been my favorite part of this internship. The ability for us to be efficient as well as make time for fun was a key factor as to my enjoyment here. My project for the summer was to promote the Honeycomb hybrid that has been excelling in parts of Canada. That project included gathering information and facts about the hybrid and compiling them into a tri-fold brochure. But whether the task of the day was planting, thinning, harvesting, threshing, or even cleaning headbags (fo dayz), I will always cherish my time at the Hulke Lab.
Jon Tetlie:
My name is Jonathan Tetlie and I am currently pursuing a masters degree in entomology with a focus on pollinators. The project that I worked on during the summer of 2016 focused on sunflower anatomy and how certain physical traits could influence access for pollinators, thus increasing pollination efficacy and lowing rates of selfing. This project focused specifically on sunflower floret length under the premise that longer florets would hinder pollination particularly from smaller bees with shorter proboscises. In order to observe a wide array of phenotypes present in sunflower, the SAM association mapping population was used to sample floret lengths at the beginning of the flowering period. These measurements were then analyzed and floret length phenotypes were associated each sunflower line. These data could be used in future experiments to further examine the influence that floret length has on seed set and selfing rates.
In addition to this experiment, I was had the opportunity to assist in the sunflower breeding process and the creation of new cultivars. As a whole, the summer research experience was highly educational and valuable from an experiential standpoint and it was very enjoyable and memorable due to the excellent people that are in the Hulke Lab.
Hi! My name is Greta Rockstad, and I am currently a sophomore at the University of Minnesota studying genetics. I interned in the Hulke lab last summer, and I am very grateful I had the opportunity to do so. I got a chance to expand my interests in plant breeding with a project on silphium, a perennial species and sunflower relative the Hulke Lab is working to domesticate for its oil quality and drought resistance potential. My project involved designing and carrying out a germination screen with a variety of different treatments to find the most effective way to germinate silphium seeds. Beyond that, I enjoyed getting to work both outside and inside, as well as learning more about all the things a breeder has to consider when developing or improving lines. It was also neat to see the collaboration that happened between the entomology, pathology, and breeding labs. My favorite part of the summer internship was getting to meet so many awesome people! I formed great friendships working alongside the other lab members, and we were able to have a productive summer while still having plenty of fun. The Hulke Lab is a wonderful place to work, and I’m glad I got to be a member if even for a short time.
I’m Keegan Jones, a junior at North Dakota State University, and my major is Mechanical Engineering. I never thought that I would end up in an agricultural research position, and the story of becoming a biological sciences aid is too bizarre to tell here, but what I will say is that I really enjoyed working as an intern for the Hulke Lab! In my time at the Hulke lab, I have participated in every step of their research process, and I have learned the many aspects and logistics of running a large scale breeding program. My boss, Brent Hulke, and my most excellent coworkers (Brady, Mike, and Brian), have taught me how and why certain line crosses are made, how crop planting is actually done, the importance of accurate field notes, the process of evaluating the resulting sunflower seeds for oil content and quality, to dealing with unforeseen mechanical issues of our equipment on the fly. I have been very fortunate for Brent going out of his way to give me small engineering projects throughout my time at the lab, which has allowed me to gain valuable experience related to my degree. I developed a seed crusher, which is used for prepping seeds for our gas chromatography tests, I designed a simple solution to lay out four reels of drip tape at the same time, and I’ve implemented a series of brushes on our combine to capture elusive seed when harvesting. The science is awesome, the working environment is always changing, and the people are the best! I know this all sounds rather cheesy, but this has been a totally radical place to work.
I’m Jordan Nelson, a Senior at North Dakota State University majoring in Agriculture Economics and minoring in Crop and Weed Science. I have been interning in the Hulke Lab for about one year now and it has honestly been fantastic. I was somewhat intimidated right away when I accepted the position of biological research aid, but the entire lab was welcoming and quickly made me feel comfortable. Being able to work both outside and inside was a very unique characteristic that I was very grateful for. But overall, the people of the lab have definitely been my favorite part of this internship. The ability for us to be efficient as well as make time for fun was a key factor as to my enjoyment here. My project for the summer was to promote the Honeycomb hybrid that has been excelling in parts of Canada. That project included gathering information and facts about the hybrid and compiling them into a tri-fold brochure. But whether the task of the day was planting, thinning, harvesting, threshing, or even cleaning headbags (fo dayz), I will always cherish my time at the Hulke Lab.
My name is Jonathan Tetlie and I am currently pursuing a masters degree in entomology with a focus on pollinators. The project that I worked on during the summer of 2016 focused on sunflower anatomy and how certain physical traits could influence access for pollinators, thus increasing pollination efficacy and lowing rates of selfing. This project focused specifically on sunflower floret length under the premise that longer florets would hinder pollination particularly from smaller bees with shorter proboscises. In order to observe a wide array of phenotypes present in sunflower, the SAM association mapping population was used to sample floret lengths at the beginning of the flowering period. These measurements were then analyzed and floret length phenotypes were associated each sunflower line. These data could be used in future experiments to further examine the influence that floret length has on seed set and selfing rates.
