Lian Durón’s Research into Strawberry Transplants using Controlled Environments

In today’s strawberry industry, propagators sell a few different types of plant materials to commercial growers for them to plant: bare root, plug, and tray plants.

• Bare root plants are dormant root systems that can be frozen, making them cost-effective; however they can come with lower quality issues like soil borne pathogen diseases.
• Tray plants and plug plants are grown in soil, with leaves and a live root system. While typically higher quality, they can’t be frozen, making them more costly to store and transport.

Lian’s Involvement in SCRI: PIP-CAP

Lian Durón was part of the SCRI: PIP-CAP, a cutting-edge project funded by USDA-NIFA with one clear mission: boost the quality and quantity of strawberry propagation using controlled environments. Her research within Objective 2 focused on developing controlled environment protocols for transplant establishment, conditioning, and storage. In other words, figure out how to help propagators improve transplant yields and preserve quality before they reach growers’ fields or greenhouses.

Recently, Lian completed her Master’s Degree in Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) at Purdue University, under the guidance of Dr. Celina Gomez. Her thesis, “Evaluating the effect of temperature and light during cold storage of strawberry transplants and runner tips,” explores how temperature and light during cold-storage can improve quality, growth, and productivity of ‘Albion’ transplants and runner tips. Read her thesis publication here.

Her Research

Using indoor systems, Lian tested how different light intensities and temperatures affected rooting and post-transplant performance of bare root, plug, and tray plants. Her findings shed light on how indoor propagation could complement traditional methods in commercial settings.

Watch below as she discusses her postgraduate journey, research, findings, and what they mean for the future of strawberry propagation.

“Higher light intensities could help shorten the rooting period which could be useful in commercial settings.”

Recognition and Next Steps

Her presentation, ‘Effect of Photosynthetic Photon Flux Density on Strawberry Runner Tips Propagated Indoors’ was awarded 2nd place in the Controlled Environment Oral Competition at the 2024 American Society for Horticultural Science Conference (ASHS).

Today, Lian works as a Research Assistant in vegetable production, continuing to translate research into useful, real-world applications.

→ Connect with her on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lianduron/