Ferguson College of Agriculture

Dr. Albert Kwarteng is a professor of weed genetics and ecophysiology in Plant and Soil Sciences here at OSU. He earned his Ph.D. in plant sciences with a minor in statistics from the University of Idaho, where he studied the physiology, genetics and epigenetics of transgenerational weed stress memory in wheat under Dr. Albert Adjesiwor, a weed scientist.

“Before that, I completed two master’s degrees at Université Paris-Saclay in France, working on plant genetics, meiosis and recombination, which built upon a B.Sc. in agricultural biotechnology from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Ghana,” Kwarteng said. “After my Ph.D., I stayed on as a postdoctoral research fellow in weed science at the University of Idaho’s Kimberly Research and Extension Center.”

Kwarteng then joined Lincoln University of Missouri as an assistant professor of weed science before joining OSU as an assistant professor of weed genetics and ecophysiology.

His research program focuses on the mechanisms of herbicide resistance and the factors that influence herbicide efficacy, including how cultural weed management practices shape both resistance and control outcomes.

“I also study weed seedbank ecology, multigenerational stress memory in crop-weed interactions, and alternative, non-chemical weed management techniques such as electrical and flame weeding, alongside more established approaches,” he said. “My appointment is 75% research and 25% teaching. I teach Fundamentals of Weed Science (PLNT 4013/5013) here at OSU.”

Kwarteng plans to expand his work on mechanisms of crop-weed competition while continuing to develop integrated weed management strategies that combine cover cropping, herbicide efficacy, weed seedbank ecology, and cultivar competitiveness to give producers more sustainable tools for weed control.

“I am also interested in exploring how cover crop presence and associated plant stress responses can influence herbicide performance in cash crops and weeds, which could open new considerations for managing efficacy and crop safety in cover crop-based systems,” he said.

Kwarteng’s research shows that understanding the mechanisms of crop-weed competition and herbicide resistance is critical for developing weed management strategies that remain effective as resistance spreads and cropping systems evolve.

“My work has shown that repeated weed competition can prime measurable phytohormonal, transcriptomic, and epigenetic changes in wheat that persist across generations and that cover cropping can substantially suppress the weed seedbank and reshape weed emergence patterns over time,” he said.

Understanding weed seedbank ecology is critical to breaking the cycle of weed pressure before it establishes, and examining how cultural practices interact with herbicide efficacy offers insight into how growers can combine chemical and non-chemical tools more effectively.

“Together, this work reflects an ecophysiological approach to building more resilient, sustainable weed management systems,” Kwarteng said.
On the teaching side, he enjoys helping students connect concepts from weed science, genetics, physiology, and statistics to real-world problems in crop and weed management and watching them grow more confident applying tools like R to their own research questions.

“Mentoring students, whether in the classroom or one-on-one regarding research questions, is one of the most rewarding parts of my work,” he said.

Kwarteng is passionate about developing science-based, practical solutions to weed management challenges that make a real difference for growers, from herbicide resistance to sustainable, non-chemical alternatives.

“OSU’s strong land-grant mission and its support for both fundamental and applied research make it a place where that kind of work can genuinely reach the people who need it,” he said. “What’s stood out the most so far here at OSU are the facilities for comprehensive research—from the labs to the field and greenhouse resources.

Kwarteng is looking forward to digging further into the resources and research community as he settles in here, and one thing you may not know about him yet is that he can speak five languages.