The Soil Health Institute’s Lead Scientist for the North American Project to Evaluate Soil Health Measurements, Dr. Shannon Cappellazzi, has been named by GO Seed to lead its research into soil and plant relationships, announced co-founder and president Jerry Hall.

Cappellazzi will be working with GO Seed’s partners and customers, Ag Research Services, the National Ecological Observatory Network, Oregon State University (where she serves on the courtesy faculty) and research collaborators across the U.S., Canada and Mexico to better understand how plants impact the microbial life within the soil.  While she credits her work at SHI with informing how she thinks about measuring soil’s capacity to support vital functions like water filtration and storage, nutrient cycling, carbon storage and erosion resistance, she is looking forward to interacting directly with producers.

Some of Cappellazzi’s initial research will be into root structures and their effect on soil structure, plant-microbial interactions, carbon sequestration, perennial cover crops, and how microbial inoculants work in conjunction with Go Seed’s cover crop seed.  

Prior to serving as SHI’s liaison for the western United States and the disciplinary lead for the Institute’s analysis of soil health in pastures and rangelands, Cappellazzi, an Oregon native, was Manager at the Oregon State University Central Analytical Laboratory. Earlier in her career, she was the Equestrian Manager for Wheelbarrow Creek Ranch and an agricultural commodities trader for Wilbur-Ellis Company.

Cappellazzi is a member of the Soil Science Society of America and serves as a board member of the Oregon Society of Soil Scientists and the Oregon Forage and Grassland Council. She received her B.S. in Animal Science and her M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Soil Science from Oregon State University.

Hall will continue to lead GO Seed’s breeding programs.