Graduate student conducts thesis research on local farmer’s field

KAYSERİ

In Türkiye's central province of Kayseri, a graduate student from Erciyes University is pioneering sustainable agriculture on a local farmer’s land, cultivating potatoes with locally developed bacteria, boron and minimal chemical fertilizers for her thesis research.

Ece Özdoğan, a master’s student at the Faculty of Agriculture, is conducting her research as part of a project titled “Isolation and Identification of Rhizobacteria from Soil and Their Use in Sugar Beet and Potato Production.”

The project is supported by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye (TÜBİTAK), the Royal Academy of Engineering in the United Kingdom and Erciyes University.

Under the guidance of academic Aziz Şatana from the Department of Field Crops, researchers have successfully isolated local bacteria from the soil, which are stored in the university’s gene bank.

These bacteria are now used in sustainable and organic farming practices.

Applying these bacteria in real farming conditions, Özdoğan aims to contribute to sustainable agriculture by reducing the use of chemical fertilizers in potato cultivation.

To support Özdoğan’s research, local farmer Şükrü Köksoy allocated around six decares of his land for her field trials.

Şatana said soil bacteria studies began about a decade ago with the goal of developing bio-based alternatives for crop production.

“The bacteria we’ve isolated can be used in sustainable, organic and good agricultural practices. Ece is applying them to potatoes as part of her master’s research,” he explained.

After harvesting potatoes with undergraduate students, the research team will collect soil and plant samples for nutritional and quality analysis, aiming to achieve high-yield, high-quality potato production.

Originally from the central city of Nevşehir, one of Türkiye’s major potato-producing regions, Özdoğan said she chose to focus her thesis on potatoes because of the crop’s importance to her hometown.

The student described the challenges and satisfaction of conducting research directly in the field.

“It’s both difficult and rewarding,” Özdoğan said. “We feel that our efforts are paying off and that we’re doing something valuable for Türkiye’s future. As a woman, working under tough field conditions can be challenging, but it’s also deeply fulfilling. When you touch the soil, you don’t forget it — it stays with you.”

Once the fieldwork is completed, Özdoğan and her team will analyze the yield and quality results in the laboratory before publishing their findings.