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Plantopia: Daily Summaries Delivered
by The American Phytopathological Society (APS)
Healthy plants are the foundation for life on our planet. They produce the oxygen we breathe and over 80% of the food we eat. The Plantopia podcast series explains how protecting plant health can ensure a sustainable future. Inspired by the United Nations declaration of 2020 as the International Year of Plant Health, the American Phytopathological Society created Plantopia so you can explore the world of plant health in company with plant pathologists—people on a mission to protect plants and our food supply.
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- 1 weeks ago41 min
Zombies, AI, and the Diseases that Keep Plant Pathologists Awake at Night
In this episode, Dr. David Hughes, Dorothy Foehr Huck & J. Lloyd Huck Chair in Global Food Security and Professor of Biology and Entomology at The Pennsylvania State University joins host Matt Kasson to discuss his 2-part career, first working on behavioral ecology of zombifying fungi and then transitioning to work on current and emerging threats to crops. He talks at length about PlantVillage, an AI-first platform he founded for helping smallholder farmers cope with pests and climate change. He also talks about the different AI-based applications he and other scientists use and rely on and emphasizes the importance of discovery and hard work in our increasingly AI-dominated work environments. Show Notes Dr. David Hughes’ Penn State faculty webpage: https://ento.psu.edu/directory/dph14 Plant Village website: https://plantvillage.psu.edu/ Dr. David Hughes’ Google Scholar profile: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=9kgD3pQAAAAJ&hl=en Dr. David Hughes’ FAST Company Most Innovative in Business profile: https://www.fastcompany.com/90651745/most-creative-people-2021-david-hughes This episode is produced by Association Briefings.Special Guest: David Hughes.
- Sep 30, 202648 min
Plant Health in the Non-profit Landscape
In this episode, Dr. Laura Kaminsky, Co-director for Research at Pasa Sustainable Agriculture, a non-profit organization based out of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania that supports sustainable farms and equitable food systems, joins host Matt Kasson to discuss her career working on soil microbiology and ecology. She also discusses the non-profit organization where she currently works and discusses how it fits into the larger agricultural and plant health landscape. show notes Dr. Laura Kaminsky’s Pasa Profile: https://pasafarming.org/staff/laura-kaminsky/ Dr. Laura Kaminsky’s Google Scholar profile: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=N9k49C8AAAAJ&hl=en This episode is produced by Association Briefings.Special Guest: Laura Kaminsky.
- Aug 31, 202651 min
2026 APS Fellow Feature Part III: Dr. Boris Vinatzer
In this episode, Dr. Boris Vinatzer, 2026 APS Fellow and Professor of Microbial Genetics and Genomics in the School of Plant and Environmental Sciences at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia joins host Matt Kasson to discuss his career working on plant biotechnology and plant pathogenic bacteria with an emphasis on Pseudomonas syringae and Rolstonia solanacearum. He also talks about his work on ice nucleation activity in bacteria and fungi and genome-based approaches for plant disease diagnostics including multi-locus sequence analysis for species level identification of plant pathogenic bacteria. show notes The full transcript for this episode can be found here: Dr. Boris Vinatzer’s Virginia Tech faculty webpage: https://spes.vt.edu/faculty-staff/faculty/vinatzer-boris.html Dr. Boris Vinatzer’s Google Scholar profile: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=STcUUYcAAAAJ&hl=en Dr. Boris Vinatzer’s 2026 APS Fellow Profile: https://www.apsnet.org/members/give-awards/Pages/awardees.aspx This episode is produced by Association Briefings.Special Guest: Boris Vinatzer.
- Jul 30, 202649 min
2026 APS Fellow Feature Part II: Dr. Rodrigo Almeida
In this episode, Dr. Rodrigo Almeida, 2026 APS Fellow, Professor of Emerging Infectious Disease Ecology, and Hildebrand-Laumeister Chair in Plant Pathology in the Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management at the University of California Berkeley joins host Matt Kasson to discuss his career working on insect-transmitted plant pathogens inside and outside California with an emphasis on the bacterial plant pathogen Xylella fastidiosa, the causal agent of Pierce’s Disease of grape. He helps untangle the tricky taxonomy of Xylella and talks about some of the modern tools and techniques his lab has developed to study this fastidious organism. Show Notes Dr. Rodrigo Almeida’s UC Berkeley faculty webpage: https://sites.google.com/berkeley.edu/almeida-lab/home Dr. Rodrigo Almeida’s Google Scholar profile: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=LMsjc2cAAAAJ&hl=en 2026 APS Fellow Profile: https://www.apsnet.org/members/give-awards/Pages/awardees.aspx This episode is produced by Association Briefings.Special Guest: Rodrigo Almeida.
- Jul 7, 202646 min
2026 APS Fellow Feature: Dr. Christina Cowger
In this episode, Dr. Christina Cowger, 2026 APS Fellow and Research Plant Pathologist with the USDA-ARS Plant Science Research Unit in Raleigh, North Carolina joins host Matt Kasson to discuss her career working on cereal diseases across the U.S., the contemporary threats wheat producers face, and the management tools and cultivars that the USDA and others are helping to develop and deploy to maximize production. She also gives an impromptu lesson on wheat production across the U.S. and talks about the joys of mentoring and serving as an editor for APS journals. show notes Dr. Christina Cowger USDA profile: https://www.ars.usda.gov/southeast-area/raleigh-nc/plant-science-research/docs/research-spotlight/christina-cowger-small-grains-pathologist/ Dr. Christina Cowger Google Scholar profile: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=APwxkDEAAAAJ&hl=en 2026 APS Fellow Profile: https://www.apsnet.org/members/give-awards/Pages/awardees.aspx This episode is produced by Association Briefings.Special Guest: Christina Cowger.
- May 29, 202655 min
The Doctor who chose plant health over human medicine
In this episode, Dr. Melanie Medina López, postdoctoral researcher in the Roman-Reyna Lab in the Department of Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology at Penn State University, joins host Matt Kasson to discuss phytobiomes, soybean cyst nematode, and biocontrol. She also discusses growing up in Puerto Rico, her time working on vaccine development, and her love of science. *Show Notes * Dr. Melanie Medina López PSU profile: https://plantpath.psu.edu/directory/mkm6528 Dr. Melanie Medina López google scholar profile: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=tegwxa8AAAAJ&hl=en This episode is produced by Association Briefings. Special Guest: Melanie Medina López.
- Apr 30, 202642 min
Searching for Plantopia's New Host / Co-Host
In this episode, former Plantopia host, Jim Bradeen, joins host Matt Kasson to discuss the origins and current state of APS's Plant Health podcast. In addition to providing a behind the scenes look of putting together a single episode, they also discuss some of their favorite memories and where they see the podcast headed as the search for a new host / co-host gets underway. *show notes * Featured episodes Going Viral: https://www.plantopiapodcast.org/64 Plant Pathology 101: https://www.plantopiapodcast.org/47 Of Peeps and People…and Plant Pathology: https://www.plantopiapodcast.org/25 Arms Race Part 1: Ug99: https://www.plantopiapodcast.org/1 This episode is produced by Association Briefings. Special Guest: Jim Bradeen.
- Mar 30, 202648 min
Lobbying for Plant Health: A conversation with D.C. lobbyist Madeline Wade
In this episode, D.C. lobbyist Madeline Wade, M.P.P., partner and founder of Brumidi Group, joins host Matt Kasson to discuss all things lobbying including her firm’s role in working on behalf of APS to advance their policy priorities and implement meaningful policy actions. She also discusses her time on The Hill working under U.S. Representative Greg Walden, navigating the crowded D.C. political ecosystem, and the role of social media and its influence on political discourse. *Show Notes * Madeline Wade’s Brumidi Group profile: https://www.brumidigroup.com/madeline-wade Madeline Wade’s Linkedin profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/madeline-wade-a2419639 This episode is produced by Association Briefings. Special Guest: Madeline Wade.
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About Plantopia
Healthy plants are the foundation for life on our planet. They produce the oxygen we breathe and over 80% of the food we eat. The Plantopia podcast series explains how protecting plant health can ensure a sustainable future. Inspired by the United Nations declaration of 2020 as the International Year of Plant Health, the American Phytopathological Society created Plantopia so you can explore the world of plant health in company with plant pathologists—people on a mission to protect plants and our food supply.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is Podzilla's Plantopia daily summary?
It's a free AI-powered email that summarizes new episodes of Plantopia as soon as they're published. You get the key takeaways, notable quotes, and links & mentions — all in a quick read.
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When a new episode drops, our AI transcribes and analyzes it, then generates a personalized summary tailored to your interests and profession. It's delivered to your inbox every morning.
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How often does Plantopia release new episodes?
Plantopia publishes monthly. Our AI generates a summary within hours of each new episode.
What topics does Plantopia cover?
Plantopia covers topics including Science, Life Sciences, Earth Sciences. Our AI identifies the specific themes in each episode and highlights what matters most to you.
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