Positions and study path:
Maria Eva Giorgioni is actually holding the position of
associate professor and lecturer of ‘Ornamental plant and protected
cultivation ', ‘Floriculture', ‘Plant propagation and nursery
management', ‘Ornamental plant propagation' and ‘Architectural
greening' at Agricultural Science Faculty, Alma Mater
Studiorum University of Bologna. She took her laurea
degree (cum laude) in Agricultural Sciences at the
University of Bologna in 1982 with a thesis about selection of
Lilium cultivars for cut flowers.
From 1982 to 1993 she carried on research activity at The
Department of Fruit tree & Woody plant Sciences thanks to
several fellowships on ornamental plant propagation and
protected cultivation; notably, in 1993 she received a 6-month
fellowship by The Italian National Research Council (CNR) to study
physiological aspects of rose propagation for soilless culture at
The Department of Horticulture, Agricultural University of
Wageningen (NL).
From November 1994 to November 2006 she was assistant professor
and from November 2006 she is associate professor of Vegetable and
Flower cultivation (AGR04) at the Department of Tree &
Woody plant Sciences of Agricultural Science Faculty, Alma
Mater Studiorum University of Bologna.
Teaching activity:
Her teaching activity, starting from A.Y. 1986-1987, is
concerning agronomical aspects of ornamental pot plant and cut
flower protected cultivation, characterization of structures
for plat growing and control of greenhouse environment,
physiological and technical topics regarding nursery production
with new growing systems, use, management and environmental
efficiency of plants for landscaping and architectonic greening.
She has presented invited seminars at postgraduate and
specialization courses of the Universities of Viterbo, Torino
and Pisa and, from her appointment as assistant professor, is
supervisor of 1st, 2nd degree and PhD students.
Scientific activity:
Her scientific activity, undertaken in the 1982, is
especially focused on ornamental herbaceous and shrubby plants
grown in open field, in pot and using up-to-date systems as
soil-less colture. Her research activities have included the
effects of gibberellins on bulbous plant and Araceae flowering, the
results of growth retardants (e.g. daminozide, chlormequat,
triazoles, phroexadione-Ca) on phenology and canopy architecture of
ornamental pot plants and the influence of IBA and NAA on softwoody
and woody shrub rooting. At Horticulture Department of
Wageningen she studied the factors able to optimise rose
propagation by ‘stenting' (e.g. light, temperature, cutting age,
leaf surface, IBA amount), too.
Other research works include bulbous plant (e. g. amaryllis,
gloriosa, lilium, nerina) and orchid (phalaenopsis, cattleya,
cymbidium) in vivo e vitro propagation and the evaluation of
lilium, rose, shrub, pelargonium, fucsia, poinsettia
and erbaceous plant (dianthus, sedum) new cultivars. Moreover
she tested the effects of the quality and intensity of artificial
lighting (including LEDs) on green foliage plant photosynthetic
activity for the interior landscaping and assessed the performance
of zeolitites and quality composted amendments as component of pot
media. About compost use, starting from 1999, she is carrying out
researches focused on the physio-morphological plant reaction, the
chemical composition of leaf tissue and the heavy metal and
nutrient leaching during herbaceous ornamental growing. At last,
for many years she is working to valuate the adaptability of
ornamental shrubs, especially groundcover roses, to high
temperatures and dried conditions under low maintenance
conditions and to test the suitability of wild species and
cultivar from breeding to green roof systems. Moreover, since 2009,
she has started a 3 year-resarch about the valuation of the ability
of ornamental shrub to extract and accumulate heavy
metals from urban contaminated soil.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry Resources, The
National Research Council, The Agriculture Department of
Emilia-Romagna Region and private organizations of growers and
waste composting companies. She is the author of about 90
publications in national and international journals and has
published a monographic book about old roses.
She has taken part in many conferences both in Italy and abroad
as lecturer and chairman and was convener and member of scientific
and organising committees of national and international congresses
(e.g. Internation Landscaping Rose Symposium; Faenza
7-8 October 2004)
Scientific Society affiliations:
She is currently a member of the following organization:
I.S.H.S.- International Society for Horticultural Science,
R.H.S.- Royal Horticultural Society,
S.O.I.- Società Orticola Italiana,
I.R.S.- International Rose Society.
