Dr. David N. Appel
Dr. Appel earned a B.S. in Biology (1973) and an M.S. (1974) in Plant Pathology from West Virginia University, and his Ph.D. in Plant Pathology from Virginia Tech (1981). He then came to Texas A&M in 1981 to work on the oak mortality problem in central Texas. Since then, his research program has since been largely focused on the epidemiology, diagnosis and control of oak wilt. He has also developed research programs dealing with Phymatotrichum root rot of apple, and more recently Pierce’s Disease of winegrapes. He has applied his expertise in epidemiology of plant diseases to the Pierce’s Disease problem by quantifying the spread of the pathogen on numerous varieties within vineyards at different locations throughout Texas. By using those measurements he is analyzing the affects of various factors on the temporal and spatial spread of the pathogen. He is also working on improved diagnosis of the disease in the field and laboratory. He has taught graduate and undergraduate courses on introductory plant pathology, plant disease diagnosis, forest protection, and environmental regulations. He served in the Department of Plant Pathology and Microbiology (PLPM) as Associated Department Head for Academic Programs from 1990 - 2007, and was recently appointed as the Program Leader in PLPM for faculty specialists with Texas AgriLife Extension Service.
Dr. Appel has been married to his tolerant, patient wife (Patricia Meronoff) for 30 years and they have one daughter, Odessa, who is 14 years of age. He has recently been running marathons every spring for relaxation. His only hobby is hand weaving, but there is insufficient time to devote as much time to it as he would like. He has, over the past few years, been developing a keen interest in tasting wine.