Figure

James Specht

Plant Sciences

James Eugene Specht (1945 to 2026) was an American agronomist who specialized in soybean genetics, genomics, physiology and the response of soybean to water. Born in western Nebraska, he grew up on a farm producing irrigated sugar beets and other crops, took a BS in agronomy at the University of Nebraska in 1967, an MS in agronomy at the University of Illinois in 1971 and a PhD in genetics at Nebraska in 1974, and joined its faculty that year as a soybean physiologist and geneticist, retiring as Professor Emeritus. He was a member of the team that built the first soybean genetic map and of the team that sequenced the soybean genome, published in 2010, and helped develop nested association mapping populations. He found that soybean yield responds almost linearly to water supply and that genotypes differ in that response, advocated earlier planting, which moved the average planting date in Nebraska and the Midwest from mid-May to mid-April, and organized the online irrigation tool SoyWater.

Facts
Birth Year
1945 1
Death Year
2026 1
Role
Agronomist 1
Connections

Works In

Agronomy, Disciplines
Source James Specht (Wikipedia)
In the Other Atlases

Nationality

Also in Geography Atlas: the nationality of this subject.

Source James Specht (Wikipedia)Lead, nationality
Quote, Lead, nationality
James Eugene "Jim" Specht (1945 – February 13, 2026) was an American agronomist specializing in soybean genetics, genomics, physiology, and the agronomics of soybean response to water.
Sources
1. James Specht (Wikipedia)
  • Lead, birth date
    James Eugene "Jim" Specht (1945, February 13, 2026) was an American agronomist specializing in soybean genetics, genomics, physiology, and the agronomics of soybean response to water.
  • Lead, death date
    James Eugene "Jim" Specht (1945, February 13, 2026) was an American agronomist specializing in soybean genetics, genomics, physiology, and the agronomics of soybean response to water.
  • Lead, occupation
    James Eugene "Jim" Specht (1945, February 13, 2026) was an American agronomist specializing in soybean genetics, genomics, physiology, and the agronomics of soybean response to water.
  • Lead, nationality
    James Eugene "Jim" Specht (1945, February 13, 2026) was an American agronomist specializing in soybean genetics, genomics, physiology, and the agronomics of soybean response to water.
  • Works In: Agronomy, Lead, field of work
    James Eugene "Jim" Specht (1945, February 13, 2026) was an American agronomist specializing in soybean genetics, genomics, physiology, and the agronomics of soybean response to water.
  • In Group: Agronomy and Crop Science, Lead, group placement
    James Eugene "Jim" Specht (1945, February 13, 2026) was an American agronomist specializing in soybean genetics, genomics, physiology, and the agronomics of soybean response to water.
View the Source
Comments (0)
No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.
Reader Challenges (0)
No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.

Agriculture and Farming Atlas

How The World Is Fed
Sign In
Text size
100%
Theme