Nebraska

For both those unfamiliar with horticulture and the well-versed, a University of Nebraska-Lincoln lecture series will present the origins of horticultural crops by studying the brushstrokes of ancient masterpieces.

As part of the 2005 Coyne Lectureship Series, Jules Janick, professor of horticulture at Purdue University, will give two public talks Sept. 29 to 30 about how art reveals the history of horticultural technology.

Janick, known for his engaging presentations, is one of the foremost horticultural plant breeders. He is editor and founder of Horticultural Reviews and Plant Breeding Reviews, as well as former president of the American Society for Horticulture Science.

His presentation, "Caravaggio's Fruits: Mirror on Baroque Horticulture," will analyze the horticultural information of the late 16th century based on the realistic paintings of Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio. This lecture will be at 7 p.m. Sept. 29 in the Nebraska East Union on UNL's East Campus.

The second talk, "Cupid and Psyche: Fables and Festoons," will discuss how Renaissance paintings from the early 16th century reveal evidence of nearly 200 species of fruits, vegetables and flowers of the time. The images make it possible to analyze the genetic diversity of horticulture 500 years ago. This lecture, part of the Coyne Lectureship faculty series, will be at 2 p.m. Sept. 30 in 199 Plant Science Hall on East Campus.

The Coyne Lectureship Series began in 2003, stemming from the efforts of Dermot P. Coyne, longtime UNL dry bean breeder and geneticist. The lectures are intended to give faculty, students and others the opportunity to learn more about other researchers' work and ideas in plant breeding and genetics.

Both lectures are free and open to the public. For more information, contact Lisa Sutton at 402-472-5646 or e-mail lsutton1@unl.edu.

The lectures are sponsored by the UNL Department of Agronomy and Horticulture in the university's Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources.