Michelina Guerra | 2026 I.S. Symposium
Name: Michelina Guerra
Title: From Urban Blight to Agritourism Destinations: Examining How to Revive Brownfields With Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi and Frass
Majors: Environmental Studies; Studio Art
Advisors: Carlo Moreno, Daren Kendall
In the United States, there are over 450,000 brownfields, where redevelopment or reuse is complicated because they may contain environmental contamination. These areas contribute to environmental degradation, urban blight, and lost economic potential. One path to redevelopment is through agritourism; however, given the challenges of growing plants in brownfields, amendments such as arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) or insect frass, which are underutilized due to limited research, can be applied. I studied the individual and combined effects of AMF and frass on lavender plants growth, development, and productivity at Lavender Trails, an agritourism business established on a brownfield in Orrville, Ohio. I conducted a manipulative experiment from May to August of 2025 on lavender plants using a randomized complete block design with a total of 128 plants across four treatment groups: AMF inoculation, frass application, both AMF and frass, and no treatment. Data were collected over four sampling dates on the leaf area index, stomatal conductance, and spike count. The results of the study indicated that there were no significant effects of AMF, frass, or the interaction between AMF and frass on any response variable, while sampling date had significant main effects on all variables. The lack of significant differences between treatments may be due to the short experimental duration, growth habit of lavender, site-specific conditions, and amendment composition, which offers insight into maximizing AMF and frass benefits. In future research, utilizing a longer study duration, a lab component, and soil tests conducted before and after the experiment would allow a further examination of long-term benefits and isolate effects in a controlled setting.
Posted in Symposium 2026 on May 1, 2026.
