Meet Ashley Summerfield, Senior Research Technician, Biological Crop Protection
Ashley Summerfield has been part of Vineland Research and Innovation Centre for 12 years, working as a Senior Research Technician in Biological Crop Protection. She is responsible for the day‑to‑day operation of the biological control lab, supporting applied research focused on greenhouse pest management.
Her role spans all phases of research trials, including experimental design, execution, troubleshooting, data analysis, and reporting. Ashley works extensively in both laboratory and greenhouse settings. Her work focuses on sustainable alternatives to conventional pesticides, with deep experience in greenhouse pest systems—particularly thrips.
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Ashley’s interest in biology developed early. She grew up in a rural community in the Ottawa Valley, spent much of her childhood outdoors, and later worked for several years on a berry farm. Coming from a farming community, agriculture has always been a familiar and meaningful part of her life.
Ashley holds a Bachelor of Science in Zoology from Western University and a Master of Science in Environmental Science from the University of Guelph. Her master’s research focused on integrated pest management of onion thrips in greenhouse floriculture crops, aligning closely with the biological crop protection work she continues to support at Vineland.
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Career Highlights
One of Ashley’s career highlights is the development of a thrips species identification key for growers, created in collaboration with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Agri-business (OMAFA). The key was designed specifically for a grower and IPM consultant audience, addressing the limitations of traditional taxonomic keys, which are often highly technical and accessible only to specialists. Instead, this tool focuses on the thrips species most commonly encountered in greenhouse systems, reflecting the increasingly global movement of plant material and associated pests. Following its development, Ashley has helped deliver workshops for growers and IPM consultants, providing hands‑on training in microscope use and practical thrips identification so that participants can confidently identify pest species on their own farms.
Much of the research Ashley supports translates directly into grower recommendations or new pest management techniques. By helping reduce reliance on chemical pesticides, this work contributes to safer, more sustainable, and more cost‑effective outcomes for growers, workers, and the environment.
“What I like about IPM is that you need to learn about how the whole system works together… There is no one‑size‑fits‑all solution— it’s an artform as much as a science.”
And Outside the Lab?
Outside of work, Ashley enjoys hands‑on creative hobbies such as art, baking, cooking, sewing, and quilting. She occasionally brings these creative skills into her work through infographics, educational videos, and very niche insect‑focused comics.