Missouri Soybean Center

John Milton Poehlman Lecture

The J.M. Poehlman Lectureship was established by the Poehlman family to honor the memory of Professor J.M. Poehlman (1910-1995). Dr. Poehlman was a very successful small grains breeder at the University of Missouri. Between 1936 and 1980, Dr. Poehlman did extensive research on genetics and breeding of wheat, oats, barley and rice, which resulted in the release of over 20 new cultivars.

He performed research through grants from the University and the U.S. Agency for International Development on mungbean, a high protein pulse crop grown in underdeveloped countries for food. Additionally, he served as a consultant for several agencies, including World Bank, International Agricultural Development Service, and the USDA, addressing world hunger.

In 1963, Dr. Poehlman traveled to Orissa University of Agriculture and Technology in Bhubaneswar, India, where he served for two years as research advisor, and he lectured in Romania in 1971 and China in 1982. He was heavily involved with the teaching of plant breeding, both at the undergraduate and graduate levels. He skillfully guided many graduate students during his career and they went on to have successful careers in plant breeding throughout the world.

Of all his accomplishments, Dr. Poehlman was most proud of his many publications. He is author of four editions of Breeding Field Crops, Breeding Asian Field Crops, History of Field Crops in the University of Missouri, and The Mungbean, and more than 150 journal and technical articles.

Dr. J.M. Poehlman was an exemplary teacher and researcher whose high ideals for scholarship and service inspired students of plant breeding worldwide.