Avishesh Neupane

Assistant Extension Professor of Soil Science, Director of the Plant and Soil Health Center

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Professional Background

• Ph.D. Geography, University of California, Los Angeles
  
• M.E.Sc. Environmental Science, Yale School of Environment
  
• M.Sc. Environmental Science, Tribhuvan University
  
• B.Sc. Environmental Science, Tribhuvan University

Research Projects/Interests

My research advances sustainable soil management and agroecosystem health, focusing on nutrient cycling, soil carbon dynamics, and climate resilience. I employ isotope tracers, field/greenhouse trials, and microbial functional trait analysis to investigate how practices like biochar application, manganese and nitrogen fertilization, and deep-rooted cover crops impact soil organic matter, greenhouse gas emissions, and nutrient use efficiency. As Director of the UConn Soil Nutrient Analysis Laboratory (SNAL) and the future Plant and Soil Health Center (PSHC), I translate these insights into accessible diagnostic services and climate-smart management recommendations for Connecticut agriculture, supporting UConn’s land-grant mission

Publications

Cordeiro, A.L., Cusack, D.F., Dietterich, L.H., Hockaday, W.C., McFarlane, K.J., Sivapalan, V., Hedgpeth, A., Neupane, A., Colburn, L., Konwent, W., Oppler, G., Reu, J.C., Valdes, E., Wright, S.J., 2024. Root Characteristics Vary with Depth Across Four Lowland Seasonal Tropical Forests. Ecosystems. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10021-024-00941-w

Patra R., Saha D., Neupane A., Jagadamma S., 2024, Deep-rooted winter wheat cover crop promotes subsoil organic carbon storage through improved microbial functional traits, Applied Soil Ecology, 99 (2024), 105413, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsoil.2024.105413.

Neupane, A., Herndon, E. M, Whitman T, Faiia A.M., Jagadamma S., 2023, Manganese effects on plant residue decomposition and carbon distribution in soil fractions depend on soil nitrogen availability- Submitted to Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 178 (2023)108964. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.soilbio.2023.108964.

Neupane, A., Lazicki P., Mayes M.A., Lee J., Jagadamma S., 2022 The use of stable carbon isotopes to decipher global change effects on soil organic carbon – present status, limitations, and future prospects, Biogeochemistry 160, 315–354 (2022), https://doi.org/10.1007/s10533-022-00963-3

Dietterich, L., Karpman, J., Turner, B, L. Neupane, A. Ciochina, M., and Cusack, D.F., 2021, Carbon content of soil fractions varies with season, rainfall, and soil fertility across a lowland tropical forest gradient, Biogeochemistry, 155:431– 452, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10533-021-00836-1.

Ojha, R. B., Manandhar S., Neupane A., Panday D., and Tiwari A., 2021, Carbon and nitrogen sourcing in high elevation landscapes of Mustang in Central Nepal, Sustainability, 2021, 13, 6171. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13116171

Li, X., Xu, S., Neupane, A., Abdoulmoumine, N., DeBruyn, J.M., Walker, F., Jagadamma, S., 2021. Co-application of biochar and nitrogen fertilizer reduced nitrogen losses from soil, PLOS ONE 16(3): e0248100. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0248100 Neupane Avishesh CV: Page 3 of 4

Neupane, A., Reed, S.C., Cusack, D.F. 2021 Warming and microbial uptake influence the fate of added soil carbon across a Hawai’ian weathering gradient, 2021, Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 153 (2021) doi:10.1016/j.soilbio.2020.108080

Li, X., Neupane, A., Xu, S., Abdoulmoumine, N., DeBruyn, J.M., Walker, F., Jagadamma, S., 2020. Application methods influence biochar-fertilizer interactive effects on soil nitrogen dynamics. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 2020, 1- 14, doi:10.1002/saj2.20170

Cusack, D.F., Ashdown, D., Dietterich, L.H., Neupane, A., Ciochina, M., Turner, B.L., 2019. Seasonal change in soil respiration linked to soil moisture and phosphorus availability along a tropical rainfall gradient. Biogeochemistry. 145, 235– 254 (2019) https://doi.org/10.1007/s10533-019-00602-4

Cusack, D.F., Karpman, J., Ashdown, D., Cao, Q., Ciochina, M., Halterman, S., Lydon, S., and Neupane, A., 2016. Global change effects on humid tropical forests: Evidence for biogeochemical and biodiversity shifts at an ecosystem scale. Reviews of Geophysics. 54, 2015RG000510.

Neupane, A., Maynard, D.S., and Bradford, M. A., 2015. Consistent effects of eastern subterranean termites (Reticulitermes flavipes) on properties of a temperate forest soil. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 91, 84–91. doi:10.1016/j.soilbio.2015.08.025