We Invite You to Visit
We welcome your visit! Please contact Dr. Michael Neff, Turfgrass Advisor at 509-592-3285, who will discuss with you your interests and arrange a customized visit with CSS faculty, staff, and students, as well as a tour of our teaching and research facilities.
The Turfgrass Management program at Washington State University (WSU) was founded in 1942.
WSU offers a B.S. in Integrated Plant Sciences with a major in Turfgrass Management or IPS minor, as well as M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Crop Science with an emphasis on turfgrass science.
What makes the WSU turfgrass program excellent is the dedicated faculty, turfgrass field facilities, and a solid graduate school program. The turf program is also supported by major programs in plant breeding, seed technology, physiology, weed science, and biotechnology. The opportunities for academic achievement of the student are limitless. Additionally, formal university training and credits can be obtained by correspondence.
To help turfgrass management students financially, there are a number of scholarships available. Specifically, scholarships that are applicable to turf majors are:
- Washington State Garden Club
- Inland Empire Golf Course Superintendents’ Association
- Northwest Turfgrass Association
- R.L. Goss Turfgrass Scholarship
- Washington-Idaho Seed Association Scholarship
The job market for turfgrass managers has been continually expanding over the past decade, and thus, there has been a steady demand for turfgrass majors. WSU students have been successful in finding jobs after college in their area of study. Many of WSU’s graduates are working on golf courses in the Pacific Northwest.
Among WSU’s more distinguished alumni are Dr. Roy Goss, a leader in turfgrass research and extension for more than 25 years; Larry Gilhuly, western director of the USGA Green Section; Tom Cook, retired associate professor of horticulture and head of the turfgrass teaching and extension program at Oregon State University; former USGA regional agronomists Matt Nelson and Jim Connolly; and Katie Dodson, turfgrass scientist with Syngenta.
Turfgrass Classes
- CROP_SCI 301 Turfgrass Management 3 (2-3) Course Prerequisite: BIOLOGY 102, 106, 107, or 120. Principles of establishment and management of turf for lawns, parks, and golf courses. Field trip required. Cooperative: Open to UI degree-seeking students.
- CROP_SCI 302 Forage Crops 3 (2-3) Course Prerequisite: BIOLOGY 102, 106, 107, 120, or 135. Adaptation, production, and utilization of forage crops. Field trip required.
- CROP_SCI 401 [M] Turfgrass Science 3 Course Prerequisite: CROP SCI 301. Integration of the principles of turfgrass science into turf management for environmental stewardship of turfgrass systems. Cooperative: Open to UI degree-seeking students.
Important Links
- Undergraduate Major in Turfgrass Management
- WSU Admissions
- Graduate Studies in the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences
If you would like to support further breeding, extension, and research efforts at Washington State University, you can make a donation to the Grass Breeding and Ecology Farm Fund.