Prof. Dr. sc. agr. Bärbel Gerowitt

Personal data

Prof. Dr. Bärbel Gerowitt is Professor of Phytomedicine at the Faculty of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences of the University of Rostock and, in addition, member of the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences of the University. After taking her diploma and dissertation in Göttingen, she worked as scientific coordinator at the Research Centre for Agriculture and Environment at the University of Göttingen and, since 2004, has held a professorship at the University of Rostock.

Phytomedicine in agricultural sciences focuses on health and performance of crops - mainly those of the total vegetation. This applies in particular for my specialization, Herbology. Field weeds are the (only) naturally occurring plants on agricultural areas. How do they stand these extreme living conditions? Which total costs derive from the fact that they compete against crop which, as a result, becomes less productive and from the fact that the weed vegetation needs to be controlled? Which contribution may self-regulating mechanisms of agricultural systems and landscape make here? How can the needed external regulation take place as efficiently and environmentally sound as possible? Crops annoy land users but their importance for the food chain on the field is vital and promenaders are delighted to see them - functions which open up attractive research perspectives.

I have incorporated several of these aspects into my work. The investigations range from effects of the climate change to opportunities to support rational and environmentally sound control decisions by modern information technologies to the influence of site and landscape structure on ecosystem processes related to weeds. I particularly enjoy projects where I get the chance to tell non-scientists and interested laypersons about the complex interactions within the diversity of plant species in agricultural use system.

Credo

An agricultural scientist's credo is characterized by the major challenges agricultural production is facing these days: food security, climate change, biodiversity. Phytomedicine is right in the middle of this. We will have to and want to establish different modes of production in the future. We do not know exactly which price we will have to pay for this - in the ecological, social and economic sense. Will we be able to involve the society here or will this, considering the increasing division of labour, become impossible? Do we need "nature" in use systems? Even if we, here in Rostock, cannot save the world, cannot protect it from hunger or from losing biodiversity, these major topics govern our research orientation and details. According to my understanding, agricultural research may and has to work in a system-oriented way - with the investigated systems being characterized by natural as well as business and social sciences. Thus, our profile and research niche here in Rostock is determined by understanding phytomedicine as multidimensional, system-oriented task.

Topics I am interested in

Agrobiodiversity: How can we control the interaction of planned and associated, unplanned agrobiodiversity on the field?

Ecosystem performance for agricultural production: How can we learn more about these processes to evaluate and increase their reliability?

Integrated plant protection: The consequent implementation of the sustainability idea in plant protection. How can it be sharpened despite of the fact that many interests tend towards undermining it?

Objectives and perspectives of EU agricultural policy: Agricultural politics affect economic acting, life and landscape in rural areas significantly. How can (agricultural-)scientific findings be integrated here in an optimum way, considering the context of various interests?

Vita

1984-1987
Project staff at the Institute of Plant Pathology and Plant Protection at the University of Göttingen

1987
Dissertation with the thesis: Weed control related to injury levels with winter grains - check and further development of the concept through nationwide test series and a computer-based decision model

1988-1992
Post-Doc (DFG) at the Institute for Plant Pathology and Plant Protection at the University of Göttingen.
1988 Visiting researcher at Long Ashton Research Station, University of Bristol, UK
1989 Visiting researcher at Wageningen Agricultural University, NL
1990 Visiting researcher at Institute Nationale de la Recherche Agronomique, Dijon, F

1992-2004
Scientific coordinator Research and Study Center Agriculture and Environment, University of Göttingen
Maternity leave, part time, children 1993 and 1996

1994
2nd place on the nomination list, Wageningen Agricultural University, Weed Ecology
Julius-Kühn-awardee of the German Phytomedical Society, trend-setting works on weed control related to injury levels

2003
1st place on the nomination list, University of Rostock, Phytomedicine

2004
2nd place on the nomination list, University of Hohenheim, Herbology

Since 2004
Full professorship (C3) for phytomedicine at the Faculty of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences at the University of Rostock.

Since 2006
Scientific advisory board for biodiversity and genetic resources at the Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection, Chairwoman European Weed Research Society (EWRS), Board, Chair of the working group "Weeds and Biodiversity"

Since 2007
Committee for Technology and Construction in Agriculture (KTBL), Working group System evaluation (Chair)

Since 2008
International Organization of Biological and Integrated Control of Noxious Animals and Plants (IOBC), working group "Landscape Management for Functional Biodiversity" (Co-Convernor), member "Commission for Integrated Production"
Agronomy for Sustainable Development - Field Editor

2009
1st place on the nomination list and appointment as professor at the Swedish Agricultural University, Department Crop Production Ecology, Weed Biology, Uppsala, S

Since 2010
Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection - Editor-in-Chief

Selected publications

HANZLIK, K. & GEROWITT, B. (2011) The importance of climate, site and management on weed vegetation in oilseed rape in Germany. Agriculture, Ecosystem and Environment, 141, 323- 331.

BÜRGER, J., DE MOL, F., GEROWITT, B. (2008) The 'necessary extent' of pesticide use - Thoughts about a key term in German pesticide policy. Crop Protection, 27, 343-351.

GEROWITT, B. (2007): Agrobiodiversität und Pflanzenschutz - ein ambivalentes Verhältnis. Journal Verbraucherschutz und Lebensmittelsicherheit, 2, 1-3 (Editorial Letter).

GEROWITT, B., BERTKE, E., HESPELT, S.-K., TUTE, C. (2003) Towards multifunctional agriculture - weeds as ecological goods? Weed Research, 43, 227-235.

GEROWITT, B., ISSELSTEIN, J., MARGGRAF, R. (2003) Rewarding Ecological Services- Requirements and Perspectives for Agricultural Land Use. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment, 98, 541-547.