Program Leader
Carol Miles
Director, Mount Vernon Northwestern Washington Research & Extension Center
Email Address: milesc@wsu.edu
Dr. Carol Miles has diverse international experiences both growing up and in her early career where she has lived in subsistence agriculture communities in places such as Panama, Afghanistan, Cameroon, Malawi and Tanzania. Carol received her B.S. (1983) in Bio-Agricultural Science from Colorado State University, and her M.S. (1989) and Ph.D. (1993) in Vegetable Crops from the Department of Fruit and Vegetable Science at Cornell University. Carol’s goal has been to work with farmers to create sustainable production systems which provide a source of well-being to both the family and the community.
Program Technical Staff
Edward Scheenstra
Ed Scheenstra grew up in eastern Washington, living on farms in both the Yakima Valley and the Tri-Cities area. After obtaining his B.S. in Environmental Science in 1999, he spent 4 years working with the Weed Science Dept. and USDA-ARS in Pullman, WA. Ed has lived in the Mount Vernon area since 2004 and is excited to be back with WSU as a part of the Vegetable Horticulture team.
Program Office and Field Staff
Adam Elcan
Email Address: adam.elcan@wsu.edu
Adam Elcan’s work focuses on cider apple research with Aidan Kendall in addition to helping with other Vegetable Horticulture projects. Born and raised in the foothills of the Blue Ridge mountains in Virginia and currently residing in Bellingham, Adam made the move from the east coast after graduating with a B.S. in Geology from Appalachian State University in Boone, NC. During the winter months he can typically be found exploring the Cascades on skis and honing his skills as an amateur photographer. He also enjoys hiking, biking, and sea kayaking when there’s no snow in the mountains and has recently been experimenting with brewing fruit wines.
Madeline Zwergel
Email Address: madeline.zwergel@wsu.edu
Madeline grew up in Madison, Wisconsin and earned a B.A in Environmental Studies, Geography, and Organic Agriculture from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in May 2023. As an undergraduate, she found a love for plant sciences through working in multiple fruit and vegetable horticulture labs. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, watching anime, and exploring the beautiful Pacific Northwest.
Jessica Weaver
Email Address: jessica.weaver@wsu.edu
Jess is a recent graduate of Western Washington University who earned a BSc in Biology with an emphasis in ecology as well as a minor in Sociology. Their previous research experiences include university level science education, tree root microbiology, and pesticide use on berry crops. They live in Bellingham with their black cat Salem and they enjoy cross stitch, painting, video games, and identifying fungi and native plants in their spare time.
Program Graduate Students
Autumn Coker
Email Address: autumn.coker@wsu.edu
Autumn Coker spent most of her childhood living on Whidbey Island, WA. She completed her BS in Biology at WSU Pullman in 2022. Her love for plants comes from her volunteer work for the restoration of native plant habitats. She continued volunteer work at NWREC this spring, with the cider apple and sweet potato projects. She joined the MS Agriculture program in August 2025 and her research focus will be on tea cultivation. In her free time, Autumn loves reading, camping, and spending time with her dog.
Alexander Cornwall
Email Address: acornwall@wsu.edu
Alex Cornwall is a lifelong native of Western Washington and being surrounded by such a lush environment, he developed a great love of plants and nature. He graduated from Washington State University in 2010 with a BS in Environmental Horticulture and joined the USDA-ARS Plant Introduction Unit in Pullman in 2011 as the Field Technician for the Horticultural Crops Program regenerating the highly diverse collection under the direction of the curator, Barbara Hellier. He has worked with the USDA for the last 10 years and will begin his studies in a PhD in horticulture in conjunction with his work in the fall of 2020 with major advisor Dr. Carol Miles. His project will be identifying Lactuca sp. with genetic barcoding and taxonomy and gene exploration of wild relatives of Lactuca sativa. Alex’s personal interests include running, botanical illustration and the fine art of cheese making.
Laura Schulz
Email Address: laura.schulz@wsu.edu
Laura Schulz grew up in Minnesota, where she developed a love of gardening and being outdoors. She graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2023 with a B.S. in Plant Science and a B.E. in Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering. Laura joined the Vegetable Horticulture program in May 2023. Her research focuses on developing sweetpotato production guidelines for direct-market farms in western Washington.
McKenzie Shelton
Email Address: morgan.shelton@wsu.edu
McKenzie Shelton is an incoming master’s student who will be working with tea plants under Dr. Carol Miles. She grew up in Auburn, Alabama, attending Auburn University for her BS in Organismal Biology. McKenzie spent the last three years living in Honolulu, Hawaii, and working as a server in Waikiki. She is very excited to be returning to lab work and furthering her education, all while exploring a beautiful new part of the country. Outside of her professional interests, McKenzie loves reading, yoga, doing puzzles, and catching sunsets.
Srijana Shrestha
Email Address: srijana.shrestha@wsu.edu
Srijana Shrestha was born and raised in the Lamjung district in Nepal. She completed her B.S. in Agriculture in 2018 from the Agriculture and Forestry University, Nepal. She worked for one year as a project officer in Biodiversity and Resource Management for Sustainable Food Security in Mountain Community Project with the Nepal Group of Helping Hands, in the very remote Dailekh district of Nepal. She joined the Vegetable Horticulture program at WSU Mount Vernon NWREC in Spring 2020 and completed her MS project in Spring 2022 with a focus on new crops for the region and soil-biodegradable plastic mulch. She commenced her PhD project in Fall 2022 with a focus on tea plant propagation.
Jordan White
Email Address: jordan.a.white@wsu.edu
Jordan White grew up in Arizona before moving to North Idaho. She developed a love of small farm systems and vegetable production during her time at the University of Idaho, where she ran the student farm club. She graduated with a B.S. in sustainable food systems and a B.S in horticulture and urban agriculture in 2024. Jordan joined the Vegetable Horticulture program in June 2024 and is working on sweet potato production for Western Washington.
Steven Young Uhk
Steven Young-Uhk earned his B.S. in Agriculture and a Postgraduate Diploma from the University of the South Pacific (1999, Samoa; 2007, Fiji) and his M.S. in Sustainable Agriculture, Food, and Natural Resources from the University of Guam (2022, Guam). He has worked for over 20 years at the College of Micronesia-Federated States of Micronesia (COM-FSM) and is currently the Vice President for the Department of Cooperative Research and Extension. Steven’s PhD research will explore the use and feasibility of washed-up seagrass in sweet potato cultivation to address the challenges of island agriculture and food production systems and to introduce climate-smart agriculture practices for food production resiliency.
Former Graduate Students
- Diego Martinez. M.S in Ag (2024). Research Focus: Growing strawberries in substrate under high tunnels and strategies of powdery mildew management at Lepp Farms, Abbotsford, B. C., Canada.
- Seth Brawner. M.S. 2022–2024. Mechanization in the cider apple orchard to reduce labor time.
- Ann Kowenstrot. M.S in Ag (2023). Research Focus: Rhubarb Research in Alaska and Recommended Varieties for Commercial Production.
- Aiden Kendall. M.S. 2020–2022. Regulated deficit irrigation and the effects of mechanical hedging in cider apples.
- Pinki Devi. Ph.D. 2017–2021. Optimizing watermelon grafting to enhance grafting efficiency and its impact on fruit maturity and quality.
- Abigail Attavar. M.S. 2017–2019 (Committee chair). Grafting as a management practice for Verticillium wilt: Evaluating Cucurbitaceae and Solanaceae rootstocks for resistance.
- Yao Mu. M.S. 2017–2019 (Committee chair). Identifying bulb fennel cultivars suitable for organic production in NW WA.
- Fairuz Boujaila. Ph.D. 2016–2018 (Committee chair). Tomato production under high tunnels; application rates and timing of different types of fertilizer.
- Shuresh Ghimire. Ph.D. 2015–2018 (Committee chair). Biodegradable plastic mulch for pumpkin and sweet corn production.
- Travis Alexander. Ph.D. 2015–2018. Advancing Washington state cider apple production through a branch-to-bottle assessment of mechanized harvest and a comparison of regional juice quality.
- Sahar Dabirian. M.S. 2015–2017 (Committee chair). Optimizing watermelon grafting to control Verticillium wilt in Washington.
- Whitney Garton. M.S. 2015–2017 (Committee chair). Apple anthracnose canker control in cider apple orchards in western Washington.
- Robin Taylor. MSAG 2015–2016 (Committee chair). Quantification of food policy groups within the Puget Sound region.
- Charlene Grahn. M.S. 2013–2015 (Committee chair). Direct market production of baby-leaf salad greens during spring and fall seasons in Western Washington.
- Jesse Wimer. M.S. 2013–2015 (Committee chair). Grafting Watermelons to Manage Verticillium Wilt in Washington State.
- Kelly Atterberry. M.S. 2013–2015 (Committee chair). Nutrition education and school garden projects with K-12 students to promote consumption of dry beans.
- Jeremy Cowan. Ph.D. 2010–2013 (Committee chair). The Use of Biodegradable Mulch for Tomato and Broccoli Production: Crop Yield and Quality, Mulch Deterioration, and Grower’s Perceptions.
- Sacha Johnson. M.S. 2010–2012 (Committee chair). Grafting Eggplant, Tomato, and Watermelon to Manage Verticillium Wilt Caused by Verticillium Dahliae.
- Callie Bolton. M.S. 2009–2011 (Committee co-chair). Organic weed control in a newly established vineyard.
- Holly Ingle. M.S. 2008–2010 (Committee member). The effect of environment and management on yield and NO3-N concentrations in organically managed leafy greens.
- Jamie Cummings. M.S. 2006–2007 (Committee member). Evaluation of seed and drench treatments for management of damping-off and seedling blight pathogens of spinach for organic production.
- Kristy Ott. M.S. 2006–2007 (Committee member). Impacts of winter growing conditions on yield and nitrate accumulation in organically produced leafy greens.
- Jennifer Wagner. M.S. 2004–2006 (Committee Chair). Heirloom-niche market dry bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) as an alternative crop for small-scale farmers.
- Vincent Mwale. M.S. Bunda College of Agriculture, Malawi, 2004–2006 (Committee member). Performance and stability of advanced bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) lines under two systems of on-farm evaluation in the bean agro-ecological zones of Malawi.
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