Dr. Melissa Muñoz is an Assistant Professor of Small Fruit Crop Horticulture at Clemson University.
I’m Melissa Muñoz. I am delighted to join the SRSFC network and introduce myself as the newly appointed Assistant Professor of Small Fruit Crop Horticulture at Clemson University (75 % research, 25 % extension). My program’s goal is to contribute to the development of integrated horticultural practices to improve the small fruit production systems. Serving small fruit growers across South Carolina and the broader Southeast. I began this position on August 15, 2025, and look forward to many collaborations with growers, industry partners, and fellow researchers in the Southern Region Small Fruit Consortium.
Background
My professional journey has been shaped by multidisciplinary research — particularly the intersection of horticultural management practices, plant physiology and plant pathology.
I started getting involved in research while studying as an undergraduate at Universidad Nacional de Colombia. I was encouraged by Dr. Juan Gonzalo Morales to apply for an open position in his tropical phytotechnics laboratory as research assistant where I worked for over two years with different horticultural systems including banana, potato and cacao. I graduated with a B.S in Agronomy in 2016 and moved to Clemson where I completed my M.S. and Ph.D. at Clemson University working with Dr. James Faust and Dr. Guido Schnabel on a project focused on Botrytis blight management (caused by Botrytis cinerea) in cut roses. My graduate research work combined field, greenhouse, and postharvest studies which were developed in close collaboration with Colombian cut flower growers, leading to applied outcomes now adopted commercially, including the integration of postharvest calcium dip applications to strengthen petal tissues and delay disease development.
Following my doctorate, I started a postdoctoral appointment in Dr. Thomas Kon’s pomology program at North Carolina State University’s Mountain Horticultural Crops Research and Extension Center, where I worked on apple stress physiology, related to rapid apple decline and ambrosia beetle attacks. During this time, I used different measurements and tools to understand early stress indicators in apple trees and their physiological implications. I was also fortunate to help and contribute to multiple applied fruit-crop projects, including canopy management, crop load regulation, and evaluation of pre- and postharvest practices on apples and caneberries. These experiences strengthened my foundation in whole-plant physiology, stress biology, and applied horticultural science—expertise that now I’m starting to apply for small fruit crops.
My role as Small Fruit Crop Horticulture specialist
My Small Fruit Crop Horticulture program at Clemson University is strongly stakeholder driven. The SC small fruit industry stakeholders through the South Carolina Small Fruit Growers Association (SCSFGA) have been the catalyzers for the creation of my program and the pathology counterpart. The support of the growers has been crucial to getting the program, and research plots up and running.
Some of the priority areas of my research program include cultivar evaluation under diverse climatic and production conditions of South Carolina; nutrient and fertility optimization in small fruit crops; biotic and abiotic stress physiology including collaborative work on Neopestalotiopsis and other regionally relevant problems; technological innovation to improve productivity and labor efficiency. As part of my extension role, I’m committed to delivering practical, accessible, and science-based recommendations for growers and regional partners of all scales to address real-time production needs
Contact:
Melissa Muñoz, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Small Fruit Horticulture
Clemson University
Email: munoz@clemson.edu
