Submitted by Ed Nangle, nangle.1@osu.edu
Dominic Petrella has joined the Ohio State ATI faculty as an assistant professor and program coordinator of the turfgrass management program. Since 2017, Dominic has been a Post-doctoral researcher in the turfgrass science group at the University Of Minnesota Department Of Horticultural Science. While in Minnesota, Dominic has led research revolving around low-input golf course management and better understanding turfgrass responses to shade; in particular, using this knowledge to breed fine fescue species for improved shade tolerance under the guidance of Dr. Eric Watkins. Working alongside faculty from University of Massachusetts, Dominic has also been leading investigations on best management practices and alternative management practices for dealing with winterkill on golf courses. Since being at Minnesota, Dominic has helped to bring in over $450,000 in grant funding as a co-principal investigator on a diverse range of projects, from research on tall fescue winterkill to better understanding practices related to fine fescue seed production. Additionally, Dominic will also be bringing along research as co-principal investigator on the $8 million, multi-state, USDA funded, WinterTurf project led by Dr. Eric Watkins at the University of Minnesota.
Dominic is no stranger to Ohio and Ohio State University. Dominic was born and raised in Girard Ohio, a suburb of Youngstown. He is an alumni of both Youngstown State and Ohio State Universities. Dominic earned his Ph.D. from Ohio State University in 2017, focused on turfgrass responses to high-intensity light. While previously at Ohio State, Dominic taught a number of undergraduate courses in turfgrass science and plant physiology, and Dominic was associated faculty at Ohio State ATI from 2015-2016 where he taught classes in both turfgrass science and plant physiology.
‘Dominic can be contacted at Petrella.21@osu.edu.