Dr. William H. Carlson Distinguished Professor Emeritus Plant and Soil Sciences Michigan State University East Lansing, MI 48824-1325 Fax: 517/353-0890 Email: carlson@msu.edu

Education:

   Ph.D., Pennsylvania State University, 1966
   M.S., Pennsylvania State University, 1964
   B.S., Pennsylvania State University, 1963

Research Interests:

Dr. Carlson is responsible for the educational programs for commercial floriculture which include statewide training sessions, area meetings, magazine articles and personal contacts. An offshoot of this program was the development of the Professional Plant Growers Association, a nonprofit trade association of over 2,000 growers, wholesalers, and retailers of bedding plants throughout the United States, Canada, and 29 foreign countries.  He has developed strategic plans for over $100,000,000 of horticultural businesses withing Michigan, the United States, and Canada.

         

Dr. Carlson's research deals mainly with the physiology of flowering crops. He has published over 35 scientific articles and 400 popular articles on the physiology of geraniums, chrysanthemums, poinsettias, roses, bedding plants, and perennials..

 

As a widely traveled lecturer on commercial floriculture subjects ranging from production to marketing of many crops, he has presented lectures in 49 states, six Canadian provinces, England, Holland, Sweden, and Costa Rica. He has also led tour groups of amateur and professional horticulturists in England, Holland, France, Germany, Switzerland, Australia, New Zealand, Tahiti, Denmark, Sweden and Norway. Dr. Carlson is also involved with the consumers of flower crops.

 

Dr. Carlson is the faculty coordinator for the Michigan Master Gardener program that trains over 1800 people per year. He is responsible for the Horticultural Demonstration Gardens and past Chairperson of the MSU Garden Consortium Dr. Carlson is also the Project Leader for the Horticulture Extension and the faculty coordinator for the 150,000 sq. ft. Plant Science Greenhouse Research Ranges. He has been a director of the Garden Writers of America and lectures to various garden groups throughout the country. His information on the care of flowering and bedding plants is read and followed by over 30,000,000 consumers a year.

Selected Recent Publications:

• Cameron, Art, Royal Heins and William Carlson. 1996. Firing up Perennials. Greenhouse Grower. Special Series.

• Heins, R.D. M.P. Kaczperski, T.F. Wallace Jr. N.E. Lange, W.H. Carlson and J.A. Flora. 1994. Low-Temperature Storage of Bedding Plant Plugs. Acta Hort.
  
• Runkle, Erik S., Royal D. Heins, Arthur C. Cameron, William H. Carlson.  1998.   Cold treatment modifies the photoperiodic flowering response of Lobelia x speciosa.   Scientia Horticulturae 80 (1999)  247-258.
  
• Runkle, Erik S., Royal D. Heins, Arthur C. Cameron, and William H. Carlson.   1998. Flowering of Leucanthemum x superbum 'Snowcap' in response to photoperiod and cold treatment.  HortScience 33(6):1003-1006.

• Runkle, Erik S., Royal D. Heins, Arthur C. Cameron, and William H. Carlson.   1998. Flowering of Phlox paniculata Is Influenced by Photoperiod and Cold Treatment.  HortScience 33(7):1172-1174.
  
• Yuan, Mei, William H. Carlson, Royal D. Heins, and Arthur C. Cameron.   1998. Determining the duration of the juvenile phase of Coreopsis grandiflora (Hogg ex Sweet.), Gaillardia X grandiflora (VAn Houtte), Heuchera sanguinea (Engelm.) and Rudbeckia fulgida (Ait.).  Scientia Horticulturae 72 (1998):135-150.
  
• Whitman, Catherine M., Royal D. Heins, Arthur C. Cameron, and William H. Carlson.  1998.  Lamp type and irradiance level for daylength extensions influence flowering of Campanula carpatica 'Blue Clips', Coreopsis grandiflora 'Early Sunrise', and Coreopsis verticillata 'Moonbeam'.  J. Amer. Soc. Hort. Sci. 123(5):802-807.

• Runkle, Erik S., Royal D. Heins, Arthur C. Cameron, and William H. Carlson.  1998. Flowering of herbaceous perennials under various night interruption adn cyclic lighting treatments.  HortScience 33(4):672-677.

• Runkle, Erik S., Royal D. Heins, Arthur C. Cameron, and William H. Carlson. 1999. Photoperiod and Cold Treatment Regulate Flowering of Rudbeckia fulgida 'Goldsturm'.   HortScience 34(1):55-58.