Experiment Station > Research Centers

Wiregrass Research and Extension Center

Headland, Henry County, Ala.
Land Area: 600 acres
Soils: Dothan sandy loam

A variety of soil types and land characteristics typical of the Coastal Plain allow the Wiregrass Research and Extension Center to address problems that challenge farmers in this region. While the center has been a leader in all types of agronomic research, it is reknown for its focus on peanuts.

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Research Emphasis Areas

Peanuts — A twenty-one year old ongoing crop rotation study centered around peanuts

Cattle — Grassfed beef research utilizing multiple forage species

Variety evaluations — Field and forage crops, including peanuts, cotton, corn, small grain

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History

The Wiregrass Substation (now known as the Wiregrass Research and Extension Center) was founded in 1929 at Headland, Ala. Early work concentrated on cotton and corn, the traditional crops of the region, but the peanut crop soon began to absorb most of the research work at the station.

After WWII farmers in the southeastern portion of Alabama steadily turned toward the cultivation of peanut as it became the primary cash crop in the region. AAES researchers used the Wiregrass land to address a host of problems associated with peanut production, including mechanical harvesting studies that reduced labor requirements for successful cultivation from 30 hours to only four hours per acre.

During the 1950s and 1960s areas of peanut research included mechanization, insect and disease control, storage and marketing. An extensive peanut storage project was conducted to provide information for farmers, peanut handlers, and warehousemen on maintaining peanut quality during storage. Also during these decades work was conducted on mechanizing cotton harvest.

A study in the 1980s found that the seeding rate for peanuts could be reduced without a significant reduction in yield or net returns.

The foundation peanut seed organization is currently handled at Wiregrass.

The Wiregrass Substation was one of the first five substations established in Alabama by the legislature to create research facilities in five main areas of the State: Tennessee Valley, Sand Mountain, Black Belt, Wiregrass and Gulf Coast. Three of the five went into operation in 1929: The Tennessee Valley Substation at Belle Mina, the Sand Mountain Substation at Crossville, and the Wiregrass Substation at Headland. The remaining two, the Black Belt Substation at Marion Junction and the Gulf Coast Substation at Fairhope, began operating in 1930.

History adapted from the following publications:

Kerr, N.A. 1985. A History of the Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station: 1883-1983. Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station, Auburn, Alabama.

Yeager, J. and G. Stevenson. 2000. Inside Ag Hill: The People and Events That Shaped Auburn’s Agricultural history from 1872 through 1999. Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station, Auburn, Alabama.

 

Last Updated: October 13, 2011