Facilities Available for Graduate Students
Graduate study in the Department of Horticulture offers many exciting opportunities. Washington’s commercial horticulture industries are exceedingly diverse, with production of fresh and processed fruit and vegetables, vegetable seed production, ornamental products, and services such as landscape maintenance. Opportunities for research in all of these areas are available.
The main campus in Pullman is located in the beautiful Palouse area of Eastern Washington. The University of Idaho is located just miles away. In addition, WSU operates a branch campus in Tri-Cities, and four Research and Extension Centers located in agricultural production areas around the state. Opportunities exist for students to conduct research at any of these locations. Full-time faculty are stationed at each of these sites. Cooperation among WSU Pullman, WSU Tri-Cities, the Research and Extension centers, USDA-ARS, and industry groups results in many high-valued projects.
Facilities
Excellent facilities are available across all of the campuses where Horticulture research is conducted. Laboratories include facilities for anatomical, physiological, biochemical, and genetic studies. These are complemented by greenhouses, growth chambers, controlled temperature and atmosphere facilities, enzyme preparation rooms and tissue culture facilities. World-class storage facilities aid in postharvest research of various commodities such as apples, pears, cherries, potatoes, and red raspberries.
The extensive land resources across the state provide varied climates and soil types for horticultural research. Orchards and land are available for field research at the Tukey Horticulture Orchard in Pullman. Additional land area is available at the Central Ferry Station (administered by the Plant Introduction Station), and the Othello Research Unit.
Off-Campus Research
Some graduate students conduct research at locations other than Pullman. Students utilize growers’ fields for their data collection, or research and farm facilities at a WSU Research and Extension Center. Students may be advised by faculty at any location.
