USDA ARS Northern Regional Laboratory

I spent all of last week working at the USDA's Northern Regional Laboratory in Peoria, Illinois collecting oil phenotype data for a panel of Camelina sativa cultivars. This exciting collaboration is looking at oil composition and drought tolerance and their genetic underpinnings. One of my roles in the project has been to use Near-infrared Spectroscopy (NIR) to quickly obtain measurements of seed oil content and quality, nitrogen, moisture, and glucosinolate content. The findings from this work will  facilitate that adoption of Camelina cultivars best suited to regional climates and which have optimal yield and oil quality. More to come soon!