Dr. Ross Braun - Assistant Professor of Turfgrass and Landscape Management  and Director of Rocky Ford Turfgrass Research Center

Dr. Braun is an Assistant Professor of Turfgrass and Landscape Management with a teaching/advising (60%) and research (40%) appointment and the Director of the Rocky Ford Turfgrass Research Center at Kansas State University (KSU). He was raised in North Dakota, where he attended North Dakota State University (B.S. degree in Sports & Urban Turfgrass Management, 2011). Before graduate school research at Kansas State University in 2012, he already had 10 years of experience in lawn, landscape, and golf course management in North Dakota, Wyoming, and Minnesota. He received his M.S. degree in Horticulture from Kansas State University in 2014 under Drs. Jack Fry and Megan Kennelly. He received his Ph.D. in Horticulture from Kansas State University in 2017 under Dr. Dale Bremer.

During graduate school he conducted and contributed to a number of basic and applied research projects. These projects focused on turfgrass colorants, experimental zoysiagrass evaluation, National Turfgrass Evaluation Program cultivar trials, fertilizer source and application timing on Rhizoctonia large patch disease, fungicide efficacy, cultural weed and disease management, managing turf to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase carbon sequestration, and turfgrass stress physiology in response to deficit irrigation, drought, and traffic stresses. The latter two projects focused on water conservation and stress management, an important issue in Kansas and surrounding states. After graduate school, he was a Lead Research Scholar in the Department of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture at Purdue University under the mentorship of Dr. Aaron Patton, Turfgrass Extension Specialist at Purdue University, for four years with research focused on low-input turfgrass systems such as fine fescues and zoysiagrass, sod production, establishment and management barriers in low-input turfgrass systems, zoysiagrass freeze tolerance, zoysiagrass genotype evaluation, water submersion (flooding stress) tolerance of cool-season turfgrass species, weed control strategies, and developing innovative research equipment.

​Currently, his research program at K-State is focused on utilizing low-input turfgrass systems, reducing management inputs (i.e., water, fertilizer, pesticides, and mowing) in turfgrass systems, investigating solutions to establishment, management, and sod production barriers in turfgrass systems, understanding turfgrass seed coating technology, surveying consumer and practitioner use of extension education services, and delivering research-based information using innovative outreach methods.

His teaching program at K-State involves advising undergraduates and graduates, overseeing undergraduate internship appointments, advising the K-State Chapter of the Golf Course Superintendents Association (GCSAA) undergraduate club, and teaching undergraduate courses on turfgrass culture, turfgrass disease, weed, and insect management, and horticultural irrigation systems.

Wesley Howe - Research Assistant and Manager of Rocky Ford Turfgrass Research Center

Wes Howe is a research assistant and turf center manager at Rocky Ford Turfgrass Research Center in Manhattan, KS. The Rocky Ford Turfgrass Research Center works to seamlessly accommodate field research needs of K-State turfgrass and landscape faculty, and serve as a premier education resource through field days and outdoor classroom/lab space for K-State horticulture students and those employed in the commercial turf and landscape industry. Wes handles day to day operations including mowing, spraying plots, equipment repair, irrigation system operation and repair that covers more than 10 acres of turfgrass research plot space, including multiple rain-out shelters. 

​Wes is a native of Manhattan, KS and a graduate of the Horticulture program at Kansas State University, with a focus on landscape design. He also has an A.A.S. Degree in turfgrass management and twenty years of experience in golf course, sports turf, residential and commercial landscaping maintenance. His hobbies include playing guitar and drums, home improvement projects, gardening, and working on tractors and other various shop projects. 

Alex Stanton - M.S. Student (Accelerated Bachelor-Master Program)

Alex Stanton is a Graduate Teaching Assistant in the Department of Horticulture and Natural Resources at Kansas State University. He is responsible for leading the HORT 550 (Horticultural Irrigation Systems) Lab and assisting in the HORT 201 Lab (Principles of Horticultural Science) and HORT 515 (Basic Turfgrass Culture) lab sections. Alex has owned and operated his own lawn care business (Stanton Lawn Services LLC) in the KC Metro since 2014. Alex has been very active at K-State as an undergraduate, where activities and societies included Horticulture Club Vice President and National Collegiate Landscape Competition (NCLC) team leader (2021 and 2022), 

Alex's research at K-State focuses homeowner perceptions and decision-making of natural turfgrass and water management in lawns and landscapes and understanding the knowledge and use of extension education services by homeowners and turfgrass and landscape practitioners. In addition, Alex is conducting research related to the use of crib sheets (study sheets) on tests in a horticultural classroom setting.  

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Parul Mandal - Ph.D. Student

Parul Mandal is a Graduate Research Assistant in the Department of Horticulture and Natural Resources at Kansas State University. She earned her Bachelor's degree in Agriculture from CCS Haryana Agricultural University, followed by a Master's degree in Agronomy from Punjab Agricultural University in India. During her master’s program, she investigated the impact of rice residue mulch loads and irrigation scheduling on wheat growth, yield, and water productivity in Punjab, India.

Parul's current Ph.D. research at K-State centers on exploring the impact of coated seed of cool-season turfgrass on storage, germination, and establishment. This innovative work has the potential to revolutionize the way we approach turfgrass management and maintenance. In pursuit of her Ph.D. in turfgrass science, Parul joined Dr. Ross Braun's Turfgrass lab in spring 2023.
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She has gained valuable experience through various programs and internships. She participated in the Rural Agricultural Work Experience (RAWE) Program, where she honed her problem-solving skills while working closely with farmers and growers. She also completed an internship program in Mushroom production at the HAIC Integrated Mushroom Research & Development Center in Haryana.

Emmanuel Nwachukwu - M.S. Student

Emmanuel Nwachukwu is a Graduate Research Assistant in the Department of Horticulture and Natural Resources at Kansas State University. He has a Bachelors in Agricultural Science (major in Plant Health Management) from Michael Okpara University of Agriculture Umudike (MOUAU), Nigeria.
 
In 2021, he started a Masters program in Plant pathology at MOUAU, but his dreams of obtaining a Masters degree in 2022, was halted by the striking union of Universities in his home country. His undergraduate and masters degree (Nigeria) research projects were focused on the use of plant extracts (botanicals) and organic amendment to control plant diseases (post harvest and field diseases) and in soil amendment practices.
 
Due to his passion for Agriculture and having identified the challenges, limitations, and opportunities in the turfgrass industry and how it can further reposition revenue, maintain a healthy ecosystem and create diverse opportunities, he decided to join Dr. Ross Braun’s lab during the spring 2023 to carry out research project on cool season turfgrass sod production (tall fescue and Kentucky bluegrass). These experiments are aimed at studying sod strength and handling differences at harvest, growth potential after harvest, and assessment of required management inputs of seeded and sodded turfgrass areas.
 
As a young researcher, he has versed knowledge that cut across agronomy, weed science, plant pathology and horticulture.
He has also gained good experiences through internship (Students Industrial Work Experience Scheme), volunteering, community development projects (National Youth Service Corps) and collaboration with others in research and learning. He is passionate about learning and more focused on achieving assigned task while beating deadlines. He is a team player and has successfully  led both small and large groups in sensitizing grass root farmers in the rural areas and as well accomplishing key projects in MDGs.
 
His hobbies include playing piano, sports, reading and research.