Purdue University. Agricultural Experiment Station

Biography

The Purdue Experiment Station was first formed circa 1879, to give professors from the School of Agriculture a location to conduct their research. The primary areas of research in those early years were agricultural chemistry, economic entomology, experimental horticulture, and experimental agriculture.

Following a December 1885 meeting between the State Horticultural Society of Indiana and the Board of Trustees of Purdue University, additional cooperative Horticulture Stations were established in Bartholomew, Cass, Clay, Floyd, Gibson, Lagrange, Marion, Randolph, Union, and LaPorte counties. These stations were under the general management of the Purdue Experiment Station, and were used to test the growth of fruits and vegetables in different parts of Indiana, in order to determine which crops were best suited for cultivation is each region of the state. Additional stations were established across Indiana from 1886-1888 to conduct further research studies, including the effects of the Hessian Fly on crops.

On March 2, 1887, Congress passed the Hatch Act, requiring all land-grant colleges founded by the Morrill Act of 1862 to establish an “Agricultural Experiment Station” department. As a result, on July 1, 1887, the Purdue Board of Trustees converted the Purdue Experiment Station into the Purdue Agricultural Experiment Station (AES). Initially comprising a staff of four, by January 1888 it had doubled to eight, including the director, Chemist, Botanist, Entomologist, Veterinarian, Florist, and one staff member each for Experimental Agriculture and Experimental Horticulture.

Continuing the legacy started by its predecessor, the AES at Purdue conducts research in all areas of agriculture, with a focus on its applications for the state of Indiana. Subjects of research for the AES have included the acceleration of plant growth, the best fertilizers for use in Indiana soils, hybrid and inbred corn strain classifications and use, and diseases affecting crops such as the southern corn leaf blight. The findings of this research are published regularly in various formats, including articles in research journals, as well as in AES publications including the Station Bulletin and Station Circular.

On July 1, 1993, the AES was renamed to the Office of Agricultural Research Programs (ARP).

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