About

About the Center

While UMass turf researchers are continually conducting experiments in laboratories, greenhouse facilities and numerous field cooperator locations throughout the region, the UMass Joseph Troll Turf Research Center is the center of the UMass Turf Program's field research universe. Located just a short drive from the UMass Amherst campus in South Deerfield, MA, the silt loam soils and gentle topography of the Center make it a site well-suited for turfgrass research. The facility is named in honor of Dr. Joseph Troll, a longtime leader in the Turf Program at UMass.

Who is involved?

An integrated, research-based team of faculty, graduate students, undergraduate students, and technical staff. The Center has a full-time superintendent who oversees the operation of the facility year-round.

What type of work is being done?

Research is typically conducted at the Center during every month of the year.  During the growing season, as many as thirty or more separate or interrelated projects may be underway at any given time.  These studies cover:

  • Selection and uses of turf: lawn, golf, athletic and utility turf.
  • Pest management: managing damage from insects, diseases, weeds and nematodes.
  • Non-biotic stresses: heat, cold, drought, traffic etc.
  • Best management practices: methods to carry out practices such as fertility, mowing or irrigation more effectively and efficiently.
  • Environmental impact: assessing and minimizing the impact of turf management practices on human health and the greater environment.

View UMass Extension Turf Program's research projects

View UMass Extension Turf Program's publications and resources

Why is this work being done?

  • to offer original contributions to science.
  • to communicate the most useful and cutting-edge knowledge to our students in the classroom.
  • to provide practitioners with the tools needed to produce healthy functional turf in the most economically viable, environmentally sound manner possible.
  • to solve problems faced by the turf industry and society as a whole.