Biography

Pietro Santamaria is full professor (Scientific Area AGR04 “Vegetable and Floriculture”) at the University of Bari Aldo Moro.
He’s appointed as Senior Lecturer in: 1) “Vegetable crops” for the Master Degree Course “Sustainable Management of the Mediterranean Countryside”; 2) “Advanced vegetable and floriculture crops” for Master Degree Course "Plant medicine"; 3) Soilless culture for Bachelor Programme "Agricultural Science and Technology"; 4) Quality of vegetable production for Bachelor Programme "Food Science and Technology".
He has been Principal Investigator in many research projects: Agrobiodiversity of vegetable crops; Microgreens; Nitrogen Fertilization Management for Vegetables; Posidonia oceanica (L.) Del.: Employment of its Wastes in Agriculture; Technical Optimization for Producing Artichoke Transplants from “seeds”; Production of Greenhouse-grown Tomato with Zero-Runoff Systems; Process and Produce INNOvations for VALOrising the Early-Potato Crop in Apulia (INNOVALO); Rationalization of Water and Fertilizer-Use for Producing Greenhouse-Crops.
Since 2014 it has been coordinating 15 partners for the integrated project "Biodiversity of horticultural species of Puglia".
He is associated with the Institute of Sciences of Food Production of the CNR, Bari, for research activities on the agrobiodiversity of vegetable crops.
He has acted as chair for 100 undergraduate-students of the Agriculture Faculty of the University of Bari and has served as advisor for 10 Ph.D students.
He has designed and coordinated the activities of the University Short Master: 1) Soilless culture (2022); 2) "Recovery, characterization and maintenance of the agrobiodiversity of Apulian vegetable crops" (2017/2018); 3) a Cipe IFTS / Research course ("Senior technician expert on innovative processes for quality and control of products obtained in a protected environment " (2008 and 2010); 4) a POR training course Puglia 2000/2006 - Axis III Human Resources - Measure 3.14 "Promotion of female participation in the labor market" ("Training course for the recognition, collection and use of spontaneous plants of Mediterranean flora for food use" - 2009).
He has lectured (teaching and seminars) in several Master and Ph.D Programs.
He collaborated with the CIHEAM IAM.B (Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Bari) as supervisor of Master's thesis in "Land and Water Resources Management: Irrigated agriculture".
He was a member and secretary of the research doctorate in "Mediterranean Agronomy" from the academic year 1999/2000 (XIV cycle) to the academic year 2009/2010 (XXV cycle), member of the Board of Directors and the Teaching Body of the PhD School in "Plant Sciences and Environmental Technologies" (University of Bari Aldo Moro) and member of the Council of Address of 'Plant science' of the research doctorate in "Sciences of the plant and technologies for the environment" (University of Bari Aldo Moro) from 12 November 2010 (XXVI-XXVIII cycle) covering in 2015 the role of coordinator of the same address for the XXVIII cycle. Since its establishment, it is a member of the teaching staff of the PhD in "Biodiversity, agriculture and environment" (from the XXIX cycle).
He has been teaching guide of ten research grant holders, three South American scholarship funded by the Cooperation Service of the Italian-Latin American Institute (IILA) and five students for the Master in "Management of soil and water resources: irrigation agriculture" of the Agronomic Institute Mediterranean (CIHEAM of Bari).
He has been speaker of over 90 students of the Faculty of Agriculture of the University of Bari for the degree exam and tutor of ten PhD students who have obtained the title of research doctor in "Mediterranean Agronomy", two PhD students who have obtained the title of research doctor "Vegetal productions" address of the research doctorate school "Plant sciences and technologies for the environment". Currently he is a teaching guide for two PhD students.
He’s author and co-author of more than 370 papers published in Italian and International Journals, including 22 books (seven monographs and the textbook "Horticulture, Principles and Practice" - Edagricole, 2018).
He won two scientific awards:
2016: "Bram Steiner Award 2016 on soilless culture" for outstanding research on the update of nutrients from nutrient solution by plants for the article "A targeted management of the nutrient solution in a soilless tomato crop according to plant needs" (Signore A., Serio F., Santamaria P. - Frontiers in Plant Science).
2014: "Vegetable Publication Award" for the article "Grafting Improves Tomato Salinity Tolerance through Sodium Partitioning within the Shoot" (Di Gioia F., Signore A., Serio F., Santamaria P. - HortScience).
He has served as peer-reviewer for PRIN, VQR 2011-2015, VQR 2004-2010, FAO, ISHS, UNESCO 2000, and numerous journals.
He is part of Editorial Board of Agriculture MDPI.