Francesco Di Gioia

Associate Professor of Vegetable Crop Science

Francesco Di Gioia

Research Summary

Plant nutrition, plant physiological and biochemical response to environmental and abiotic stress conditions, sustainable vegetable production, agrobiodiversity, agronomic biofortification, food and nutrition security.

Huck Graduate Students

Huck Affiliations

Links

Most Recent Publications

Tara Mather, Niroshan Siva, Marjorie Jauregui, Pradip Poudel, Maria de Lima Brossi, Joshua Lambert, Francesco Di Gioia, Erin Connolly, Charles Anderson, 2024, Current Protocols on p. e1110

Bok Choy Growth Monitoring Using IoT Technology and a Recurrent Segmentation Model

Chenchen Kang, Xinyang Mu, Aline Novaski Seffrin, Francesco Di Gioia, L He, 2024, ASABE on p. 1-11

Impacts of the Ban on the Soil-Applied Fumigant Methyl Bromide

Erin Rosskopf, Francesco Di Gioia, Isaac Vincent, Jason Hong, Xin Zhao, 2024, Phytopathology on p. 1161-1175

Zinc biofortification via fertigation using alternative zinc sources and concentration levels in pea, radish, and sunflower microgreens

Pradip Poudel, Erin L. Connolly, Misha Kwasniewski, Joshua Lambert, Francesco Di Gioia, 2024, Scientia Horticulturae on p. 113098

Daniel Winstead, Francesco Di Gioia, Marjorie Jauregui, Michael Jacobson, 2024, Food Science and Nutrition on p. 2050-2060

K. S.S. Alneyadi, M. S.B. Almheiri, N. Tzortzakis, F. Di Gioia, Z. F.R. Ahmed, 2024, Journal of Agriculture and Food Research

Fritzner Pierre, Kathleen Demchak, Matthew Cooper, Myungjin Lee, Francesco Di Gioia, 2024, Horticulturae

Yield, quality and resource use efficiency of basil grown in alternative soilless growing systems

Andrew Blunk, Myungjin Lee, Trevor Johnson, Raymond Balaguer, Francesco Di Gioia, 2023, Acta Horticulturae on p. 695-702

Assessing the reliability of portable ion-selective electrodes proposed for the on-farm management of nutrient solutions and fertigation of horticultural crops

G. Silva-Pumarada, F. Di Gioia, 2023, Acta Horticulturae on p. 801-807

Edible flowers as an emerging horticultural product: A review on sensorial properties, mineral and aroma profile

Eleomar de O. Pires, Francesco Di Gioia, Youssef Rouphael, Pedro García-Caparrós, Nikolaos Tzortzakis, Isabel C.F.R. Ferreira, Lillian Barros, Spyridon A. Petropoulos, Cristina Caleja, 2023, Trends in Food Science and Technology on p. 31-54

Most-Cited Papers

Micro-scale vegetable production and the rise of microgreens

Marios C. Kyriacou, Youssef Rouphael, Francesco Di Gioia, Angelos Kyratzis, Francesco Serio, Massimiliano Renna, Stefania De Pascale, Pietro Santamaria, 2016, Trends in Food Science and Technology on p. 103-115

Sprouts, Microgreens and “Baby Leaf” Vegetables

Francesco Di Gioia, Massimiliano Renna, Pietro Santamaria, 2017, on p. 403-432

Physicochemical, agronomical and microbiological evaluation of alternative growing media for the production of rapini (Brassica rapa L.) microgreens

Francesco Di Gioia, Palmira De Bellis, Carlo Mininni, Pietro Santamaria, Francesco Serio, 2017, Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture on p. 1212-1219

Francesco Di Gioia, Spyridon A. Petropoulos, Monica Ozores-Hampton, Kelly Morgan, Erin N. Rosskopf, 2019, Agronomy

Vegetable organosulfur compounds and their health promoting effects

Spyridon Petropoulos, Francesco Di Gioia, Georgia Ntatsi, 2017, Current Pharmaceutical Design on p. 2850-2875

Francesco Di Gioia, Monica Ozores-Hampton, Xin Zhao, John Thomas, Patrick Wilson, Zhuona Li, Jason Hong, Joseph Albano, Marilyn Swisher, Erin Rosskopf, 2017, Agro-Ecosystems on p. 194-205

Organic amendments for pathogen and nematode control

Erin Rosskopf, Francesco Di Gioia, Jason C. Hong, Cristina Pisani, Nancy Kokalis-Burelle, 2020, Annual Review of Phytopathology on p. 277-311

Francesco Di Gioia, Nikolaos Tzortzakis, Youssef Rouphael, Marios C. Kyriacou, Shirley L. Sampaio, Isabel C.F.R. Ferreira, Spyridon A. Petropoulos, 2020, Antioxidants

Culinary Assessment of Self-Produced Microgreens as Basic Ingredients in Sweet and Savory Dishes

Massimiliano Renna, Francesco Di Gioia, Beniamino Leoni, Carlo Mininni, Pietro Santamaria, 2017, Journal of Culinary Science and Technology on p. 126-142

Glucosinolate profile of Eruca sativa, Diplotaxis tenuifolia and Diplotaxis erucoides grown in soil and soilless systems

Francesco Di Gioia, Pinarosa Avato, Francesco Serio, Maria Pia Argentieri, 2018, Journal of Food Composition and Analysis on p. 197-204

News Articles Featuring Francesco Di Gioia

$1M USDA grant to perfect weed killing method in organic crop production

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has awarded a four-year, $1 million grant to a team led by plant scientists and an economist from Penn State to investigate anaerobic soil disinfestation to support transitioning from conventional to organic production systems.

College of Ag Sciences recognizes faculty, staff for research achievements

Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences lauded outstanding accomplishments in research during the 2023 Research Awards Ceremony, held Nov. 1 at the Hintz Family Alumni Center on the University Park campus.

Select microgreens in custom diet may help deliver desired nutrients

A diet including a carefully selected assortment of microgreens may help address an individual’s nutritional deficiencies, according to a Penn State researcher who led an international team that evaluated the mineral content in young specimens of many different plant species.

Biofortification of microgreens with zinc could mitigate global ‘hidden hunger’

When the seeds of plants such as pea and sunflower are biofortified with zinc, the seedlings they quickly produce — harvested as microgreens — could both help to mitigate global malnutrition and boost the odds of people surviving a catastrophe.

Internet-based precision irrigation system shows promise for fresh-market tomato

An “internet of things” — or IoT — system monitoring real-time data from soil-based sensors to activate an automated precision irrigation setup can conserve water and boost crop production, according to a team of Penn State researchers.

Microgreens are tiny, tasty and packed with nutrients; How to grow them indoors, year-round

Microgreens bring flavor, texture and delight to a meal, especially in times when fresh produce isn’t in season.

Grant to fund research on biological approach to manage soil pathogens and pests

In an effort to boost the profitability and sustainability of organic specialty crop productions, a team of scientists is improving and optimizing a method for controlling soilborne pests and pathogens and promoting soil health that prevents oxygen from entering the soil.

Small but mighty: Microgreens go from trendy vegetables to functional food

Starting decades ago as fashionable, high-value gourmet greens, today microgreens have gained popularity among consumers for their nutritional profile and high content of antioxidant compounds. Now, a new study suggests that the tiny plants have the potential to help provide global nutrition security.

Salad will survive climate change. But at what cost?

We made eating greens more convenient. Can we make it truly democratic?

Research team to study food resilience in the face of catastrophic global events

An interdisciplinary team of Penn State professors has received $3 million from Open Philanthropy to study food resilience in the face of potentially catastrophic global events.