Dr. Naveen Kumar Dixit, previously known as Dr. Naveen Kumar, is an assistant professor of horticulture and a UMES Extension specialist in the School of Agricultural and Natural Sciences. He has been at UMES for 3 years, splitting his time equally between extension and teaching/research.
According to Dixit, the extension efforts involve “providing strong educational support to county extension faculty, commodity groups, regulatory agencies, and fruit growers seeking solutions to producer and industry problems on the Delmarva Peninsula.” The research efforts “provide statewide leadership and science-based research programs on critical issues facing the fruit and vegetable industry on the Eastern Shore of Maryland” while the teaching efforts generate knowledge-based human resource on the lower shore.
Dixit works on multiple aspects of crop growth and development including: stress physiology, postharvest physiology, plant-pathogen interaction, nutrient management, phosphorus phytoremediation, community horticulture, global climate change, produce safety, nanotechnology, fruit and vegetable production, and orchard management.
“In addition to rejuvenating the lost fruit industry on the Eastern Shore of Maryland,” Dixit said, “I am working to establish a multi-fruit orchard at UMES for teaching, research, and extension.” He is actively engaged in community welfare with “a vision of promoting fruit/vegetable cultivation in each backyard in Maryland for a healthy and wealthy lifestyle.”
In order to rejuvenate the fruit industry on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Dixit aims to establish a local cooperative farmer association in the Tri-County area; develop postharvest technology, abiotic and biotic stress management, and mineral nutrient management for fruit and vegetable crops; conduct fruit variety testing and evaluation and recommend conventional and organic production systems; and develop nano-technological management and control techniques for soil and foliar-borne pest, diseases, and weeds in fruit, vegetables, and row crops.
“Dr. Dixit is an energetic scientist who has the vision of bringing solutions related to horticulture problems to multiple communities on Delmarva,” said Dr. Nelson Escobar, interim associate administrator for UMES Extension.
Dixit also serves as the coordinator of the Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (NE SARE). The organization provides “grants and education to advance innovations in sustainable agriculture.” He has been instrumental in the award of $594,000 in funded grants and contracts at UMES as a principal investigator and co-principal investigator. He has authored 23 refereed research publications and six non-refereed publications along with nine trade journal articles, eight abstracts, and a book chapter. He is also a member of the American Society for Horticultural Science and the Maryland Association of County Agricultural Agents.
Dixit received his doctorate in plant physiology with a minor in biochemistry and molecular biology from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute in Delhi, India. His bachelor’s in botany is from the University of Delhi and his master’s in plant physiology with a minor in genetics and soil science is from the Choudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University in Hissar, India.
