In many ways, taking over as the new director of the Virginia Tech Tidewater Agricultural Research and Extension Center in Suffolk, is a homecoming for Matthew Chappell who grew up not too far from the station in rural Dinwiddie County in southeastern Virginia.

“I am from the area so when I noticed this job open up at an Agricultural Research & Extension Center that I actually knew from my childhood, I decided to give it a shot and apply,” says Chappell, who has been on board as professor and director of the Tidewater Research Station since Aug. 1.

Chappell grew up in Dinwiddie County where his grandfather grew tobacco and peanuts and at times, soybeans and corn. After graduating from Dinwiddie Co. High School in 1994, Chappell enrolled at Virginia Tech where he earned a B.S. degree in horticulture in 1998. He then went on to get an M.S. in Crop, Soil, and Environmental Science at Virginia Tech that also included a stint at the Swedish University of Land Studies in 2000-01 as a Fulbright Scholar. He earned a Ph.D. in Horticulture from the University of Georgia in 2007.

Prior to returning home to Virginia, Chappell was a professor and Extension specialist at the University of Georgia. “I spent almost 15 years at UGA as an Extension specialist, covering the entire state, mainly working with specialty crops such as ornamentals, small fruits such as blueberries and to a lesser extent, citrus,” Chappell says.

“Historically, my research at the University of Georgia was more on the specialty crop side, and I’ll continue that to a certain extent. But more of my research is going to be focused on precision agriculture such as using autonomous systems to detect and treat plant stress,” Chappell says.

Basic and applied research

He explains that the applied research the station is known for will continue, but a new focus on slightly more basic research will become part of the AREC’s identity, specifically research on precision agriculture.

“Along those lines of basic research, it’s not going to be what you would think of as someone standing in a lab with a test tube. It’s going to be more on technology advancement, precision agriculture in particular. It will be either taking off the shelf type tools and using them in interesting and novel ways or developing new tools and technologies, whether it be coding from a software standpoint or hardware development,” Chappell explains.

Even though it will be basic research, Chappell says it will still be very much applied research, with testing in farmers’ fields rather than laboratories. Chappell says the center is in the process of hiring a precision agriculture faculty member to focus on the work and will be based out of the Tidewater AREC.

As the station shifts to more of a focus on precision agriculture, Chappell highlights a grant that he has just submitted where drones will be used for identification and spot spraying of pests in a field situation.

“This proposed project will utilize drones to apply pesticides after the drone itself recognizes what the pest or insect problem could be. This will be a completely autonomous system for applying pesticides,” Chappell says. “This research highlights the Smart Farms Initiative that Virginia Tech has been promoting across the state.”

Collaborative work

Chappell says the beauty of the AREC system in Virginia is that it is a system where all the ARECs work in collaboration rather than just as individual research stations. He also credits strong support for ag research at off-campus ARECs from Virginia Tech CALS for the continued success of Tidewater AREC. Finally, he credits the strong support from farmers, industry, and state legislature for growth of the station, with the addition of a faculty member this year being a prime example.

“Coming in as a new director, it gives me hope to see the level of support that has been pledged moving forward. There has been quite a bit of discussion, both within the College of Agriculture and with the State Legislature, on funding proposals moving forward. Some are underway now,” Chappell says.

For example, Chappell says the Virginia Seafood Agricultural Research and Extension Center in Hampton has a new building going up that is quite impressive. Chappell notes that a central office and laboratory building at the Tidewater AREC is 110 years old and desperately needs renovation. He is optimistic funds will be allocated for the renovations.

“I know funding will continue both for personnel, equipment, and infrastructure. I don’t have a whole lot of concern,” he says. “There is great support from Virginia Tech for the ARECs. Dean Allen Grant and Associate Dean (Research) Dr. Saied Mostahimi have provided amazing support to not only the Tidewater AREC, but the entire AREC system,” Chappell says.

The Tidewater AREC was established in 1914. The research and Extension focus of the station continues to include row crop agronomy and pest management as well as swine production. It is one of 11 ARECs located across Virginia.