The station, near Lind, Washington, promotes and improves dryland farming in an area of eastern Washington that typically receives 8 to 12 inches of rain a year. Wheat breeding, variety adaptation, weed and disease control, soil fertility, erosion control, and residue management are the main research priorities.
Elson S. Floyd was named tenth president of Washington State University on December 13, 2006 and took office on May 21, 2007. A native of Henderson, North Carolina, President Floyd holds a doctor of philosophy degree in higher education and most recently served as the president of the four-campus University of Missouri system.
R. James Cook, USDA plant pathologist and WSU professor, was elected into membership in the National Academy of Sciences.
J.W. Kalkus, superintendent of the college’s Puyallup Research Center, reported that “one new berry plant developed at the station has added $15 million to the state’s wealth during the last 10 years.”
Washington State College officially becomes Washington State University.
After an infestation of hops lice destroys crops in the Puyallup River region in 1891, the legislature decides to locate the state’s first experiment station in Puyallup instead of Pullman. The station is constructed on 40 acres of land donated by the Ross family, giving the facility its first name, Ross’s Station. Now called the Puyallup Research & Extension Center, the center continues to provide valuable services and information to the local community.
