Faculty

Jonathan Lynch

Distinguished Professor of Plant Nutrition

221 Tyson
University Park, PA

Email jpl4@psu.edu
Phone 814-863-2256

Overview

Plant adaptation to nutrient and water stress. Global change. World hunger. Root biology.

Centers & Institutes

Center for Root and Rhizosphere Biology

Roots Lab

Although the researchers looked far back into time in conducting their study, they suggest the findings may have implications for the future. Credit: Manfred Richter from Pixabay. All Rights Reserved.

August 18, 2025

Corn root traits evolved with both human-driven, natural environmental changes

January 30, 2025

The worst weeds of tomorrow, bugs vs. bugs, and ‘coughing’ trees: The latest in garden research

Jonathan Lynch in Mozambique reviewing a bean experiment with (from left) Celestina Jochua, Magalhaes Miguel and Soares Xerinda, all of whom are scientists with the Mozambican government, who earned their doctoral degrees under Lynch's supervision at Penn State. Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

November 05, 2024

Distinguished professor in plant nutrition retires after long, impactful career

March 19, 2024

These Researchers Are Digging Into the Understudied Science of Roots

Although this method of identifying deep-rooting plants was accomplished with corn, shown here on a cloudy summer morning growing at Penn State's Russell E. Larson Agricultural Research Center, it can be used with all plants, the researchers said. Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

March 19, 2024

Novel method to measure root depth may lead to more resilient crops

Attending the 2023 Research Awards Ceremony hosted by Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences were, seated from left, Michael Skvarla, Kristina Brant, Timothy Lulis, Jasna Kovac, Margarita López-Uribe and Sridhar Komarneni. Standing: Tong Qiu, Parisa Kalantari, Andrew Patterson, Claudia Schmidt, Stephanie Bierly, Francesco Di Gioia, Zhang Tian, Jonathan Lynch and Suat Irmak. Credit: Kaiyi Chan / Penn State. Creative Commons

November 21, 2023

College of Ag Sciences recognizes faculty, staff for research achievements

Members of the CRRB standing on an outside staircase to pose for a group photo

September 29, 2023

Liana Burghardt named new Director of Center for Root and Rhizosphere Biology

Harvested sweet potatos showing storage root variability. These were grown at the Russell E.Larson Agricultural Research Center ar Rock Springs, Pennsylvania. Credit: Luis Duque/Penn State. All Rights Reserved.

July 19, 2023

Crop physiologist to study phosphorus availability and storage root growth

Cross sections of corn roots showing genetic variation for aerenchyma formation, which converts living cells to air space. Now that researchers have found the gene associated with the phenotype, it can be a plant-breeding target. Credit: Tania Galindo Castaneda. All Rights Reserved.

March 16, 2023

Discovery of root anatomy gene may lead to breeding more resilient corn crops

Andrew Patterson and Jonathan Lynch in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences were recognized recently as highly cited researchers. Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

January 12, 2023

Two College of Ag Sciences faculty among highly cited researchers in 2022

Plants expressing the parsimonious root phenotype actually grow fewer roots, ensuring that the few roots that are produced have adequate resources to grow deep into the soil, which is especially important under drought stress. The graphic above shows simulated roots in corn-growing locations Boone County, Iowa, U.S., and Tepatitlán, Jalisco, Mexico. Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

December 07, 2022

Study shows ‘steep, cheap and deep’ roots help corn plants deal with drought

Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences faculty and staff were lauded for their work during the college’s inaugural Research Awards Ceremony. Front row, from left, are Karen Fisher-Vanden, Suresh Kuchipudi, Calvin Norman, Melissa Kreye and Jasna Kovac. Second row, from left, are Christina Grozinger, Michael Peck, Brian Thiede, Christopher Scott, Suat Irmak, Claudia Schmidt, Jason Rasgon and Jonathan Lynch. Credit: Rachel Unger / Penn State. Creative Commons

November 08, 2022

Faculty in College of Ag Sciences recognized for research achievements

Legal Statements