Researcher biography
Alicia was born in the UK, but moved to NZ at an early age. Alicia completed her education through to her master’s degree at the University of Auckland where she was a recipient of the Kate Edgar Masters Award. Alicia is a Ph.D. student in the Plant Development lab run by Professor Christine Beveridge. She is also the recipient of a CSIRO Postgraduate Scholarship in Agriculture and Food. Her Ph.D. research aims to understand traits that can be used to transform productivity and sustainability in the food industry. Plant architecture is a key determiner of crop yield. The shape and number of shoot branches underpin yield, by influencing the number of leaves, seed, flowers, and fruit a plant can produce. Identifying underlying mechanisms responsible for the differences in shoot architecture is fundamental to productivity in agriculture and horticulture.