CAMPUS DIRECTORY

Chico State Bio-Whitney Brim-DeForest

 

Education

Ph.D. Horticulture and Agronomy, University of California, Davis. 2016 M.S. International Agricultural Development, University of California, Davis. 2014 G.A.C. Development Practice, University of California, Davis. 2014 B.A. (with Honors) Biology, Music, Brown University. 2004

 

About

Whitney Brim-DeForest has been a Lecturer at Chico State in the Plant Sciences Department since 2018. She holds a M.S. in International Agricultural Development and a PhD in Horticulture and Agronomy from the University of California, Davis. She also holds a dual BA in Biology and Music from Brown University. Whitney has been working in rice for close to 20 years, with her research and extension activities focusing primarily on the identification and management of weeds in rice and wild rice systems. She was also a Sustainable Agriculture Volunteer with the United States Peace Corps in Senegal, West Africa, where she served three years. She is a full-time Rice and Wild Rice Advisor at the University of California Cooperative Extension, covering Sutter, Yuba, Placer, and Sacramento Counties.

 

Teaching and Research Interests

Classes taught at Chico State (varies):

• AGRI 331Agroeceology (labs)
• PSSC 390 Food Forever
• PSSC 392 World Food and Fibre
• PSSC 459 Crop Physiology
• PSSC101 Introduction to Plant Sciences (labs)
• AGRI 490W Agri Experimental Research

 

Research Interests:

• Rice, Wild Rice
• Integrated Pest Management
• Weed Science
• Agricultural Extension
• Participatory Development
• Climate Smart Agriculture

 

Languages:

·         English (Primary fluency)

·         French (Limited working proficiency)

·         Fula (Full professional proficiency)

 

Peer-Reviewed Publications

 

1.      Bishop, K & Brim-DeForest, W. (2008). Kinematics of turning maneuvers in the Southern flying squirrel, Glaucomys volans. Journal of experimental zoology. Part A, Ecological genetics and physiology. 309. 225-42. 10.1002/jez.447.

2.      Brim-DeForest, WB; Al-Khatib, K; Fischer, AJ (2017). Predicting Yield Losses in Rice Mixed-Weed Species Infestations in California. Weed Science. 65:1, 61-72.

3.      Brim-DeForest, WB; Al-Khatib, K, et al. (2017). Weed Community Dynamics and System Productivity in Alternative Irrigation Systems in California Rice. Weed Science. 65:1, 177-188.

4.      De Leon, T. B., Karn, E., Al-Khatib, K., Espino, L., Blank, T., Andaya, C. B., Andaya, V. C., & Brim-DeForest, W. (2019). Genetic variation and possible origins of weedy rice found in California. Ecology and Evolution, 9(10), 5835-5848. https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.5167

5.      Karn, E., De Leon, T., Espino, L., Al-Khatib, K., & Brim-DeForest, W. (2020). Effects of competition from California weedy rice (Oryza sativa f. spontanea) biotypes on a cultivated rice variety. Weed Technology, 1-9. doi:10.1017/wet.2020.35

6.      Karn, E; De Leon, T; Espino, L; Al-Khatib, K; Brim-DeForest, W. (2020). Phenotypic Diversity of Weedy Rice (Oryza sativa f. spontanea) Biotypes Found in California and Implications for Management. Weed Science 68 (5), 485-495

7.      Kanter, J., Clark, N, Lundy, ME, Koundinya, V., Leinfelder-Miles, M., Long, R., Light, S. E., Brim-DeForest, W. B., Linquist, B., Putnam, D, Hutmacher, R. B., & Pittelkow, C. M. (2021). Top management challenges and concerns for agronomic crop production in California: Identifying critical issues for extension through needs assessment. Agronomy Journal. 113: 5254– 5270. https://doi.org/10.1002/agj2.20897

8.      Galvin, L., Inci, D., Mesgaran, M., Brim-DeForest, W., & Al-Khatib, K. (2022). Flooding depths and burial effects on seedling emergence of five California weedy rice (Oryza sativa spontanea) accessions. Weed Science, 70(2), 213-219.

9.      Rosenberg S, Crump A, Brim-DeForest W, Linquist B, Espino L, Al-Khatib K, Leinfelder-Miles MM and Pittelkow CM (2022) Crop Rotations in California Rice Systems: Assessment of Barriers and Opportunities. Front. Agron. 4:806572.

10. Brim-DeForest, W., Al-Khatib, K., & Fischer, A. (2022). Emergence and early growth of multiple herbicide–resistant and -susceptible late watergrass (Echinochloa phyllopogon). Weed Technology, 36(1), 101-109.   

11. Al-Khatib, K; Brim-DeForest, W; Eckert, J; Fischer, A. (Revised 2023) “Weeds” Chapter. In Espino LA, Greer CA, Al-Khatib K, Godfrey LD, Eckert JW, Fischer A, Lawler SP. Revised continuously. UC IPM Pest Management Guidelines: Rice. UC ANR Publication 3465. Davis, CA.

12. Vulchi, R; Guan, T; Clark, T; Brim-DeForest, W. (2024). Echinochloa spp response to preemergence and postemergence herbicides in California rice (Oryza sativa L.). Frontiers in Agronomy 6, 1349008.

13. Vulchi, R., Guan, T., Clark, T. & Brim-DeForest, W. (2024) Phenotypic characterization of Echinochloa species in California rice. Weed Research, 64(6), 456–466. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1111/wre.12667

14. Kanter, J.; Leinfelder-Miles, M.; Clark, N.; Lundy, M. E; Koundinya, V.; Long, R., Light, S.E.;  Brim-DeForest, W.; Linquist, B.; Putnam, D.; Hutmacher, Robert B.; Pittelkow, C.M. (2024). Setting research and extension priorities for agronomic crops in California. California Agriculture, 78(2). http://dx.doi.org/10.3733/001c.118769

15. Rosenberg, S., Gaudin, A. C., Fenster, T. L., Brim-DeForest, W., Linquist, B., Leinfelder-Miles, M. M., Espino, L., Al-Khatib, K., & Pittelkow, C. M. (2025). Benefits and tradeoffs of diversifying rice-based cropping systems: Impacts on soil health, productivity, and agroecosystem multifunctionality. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 391, 109691. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2025.109691

16. Linquist, B., Al-Khatib, K., Brim-DeForest, W., Espe, M. B., Espino, L., Leinfelder-Miles, M., & Stogsdill, J. R. (2025). Predictors of high rice yields in a high-yielding environment: Lessons from a yield contest. Field Crops Research, 322, 109693. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fcr.2024.109693