Today, it's about eight miles due west, where you'll find the 572-acre West Madison Agricultural Research Station. West Madison is where researchers work when they must get to their field plots on an almost daily basis. Located on some of Wisconsin's finest soils on Madison's urban fringe, it's perfect for projects that require intensive supervision and frequent data collection. It's also close enough to let instructors take classes into the field without disrupting students' class schedules. Agronomists and geneticists use the facility for field trials involving breeding of field corn, sweet corn and small grains.
Horticulturists use the fields for vegetable breeding.
Agricultural engineers find the station convenient for running prototype equipment under field conditions. They had a hand in designing station buildings and establishing soil conservation structures. The station also has a high-capacity irrigation well and irrigation equipment to ensure that researchers will have adequate moisture for their plots. Although there are no livestock at West Madison, the station does produce and store forage and feed for the research herds located on the Madison campus. The West Madison station is a good place for agricultural groups and faculty to hold meetings.