Carvel Research and Education Center
Welcome
UD's 347-acre Agriculture Research Experimental Station and Sussex Cooperative Extension
Poultry Health
Agronomic Crop Tour 2024
Research + Extension
Sharing the latest research with our community
Crop Research
Creating Partnerships
Reaching across programs and institutions for efficient solutions
The Elbert N. and Ann V. Carvel Research and Education Center
The Carvel Center campus, located in Georgetown in Sussex County, fulfills the tripartite mission of our land-grant university — teaching, research and Extension outreach. The Carvel Center serves as the southern agriculture experiment station for the University of Delaware College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, and encompasses the Thurman Adams Jr. Agriculture Research Farm (347 acres) with a focus on agronomic, vegetable and horticulture crops, the Warrington Irrigation Research Farm (120 acres) in Harbeson, Lasher Laboratory for poultry diagnostics, and the Jones Hamilton Environmental Research House. Our campus is also home to Sussex County Cooperative Extension providing programing in 4-H Youth Development, Poultry, Family and Consumer Sciences, and Lawn and Garden.
With an overall staff of 50 full-time administrators, agents, faculty, and specialists, assisted by 50 to 70 seasonal part-time employees and student interns, the Carvel Center paves the way in serving the needs of the agricultural industry, youth and families, students and residents of our great state. Learn more about our history.
Our research and educational facilities
Advancing agriculture in the first state
Article by Molly Schafer Photos by Michele Walfred and courtesy of the Delaware Department of Agriculture March 04, 2025
Mark Isaacs, long-time director of Carvel Research and Education Center, concludes a UD career filled with impact
This month, after 38 years at UD, Isaacs will retire from his dual roles as director of the Elbert N. and Ann V. Carvel Research and Education Center in Georgetown and associate professor in the Department of Plant and Soil Sciences.
Isaacs is equally known and appreciated for his ability to create partnerships with county, state, industry and private partners and for his role as a career coach for students in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (CANR).
Montage of Extension Staff in Action in Delaware: youtube.com/watch?v=UHPYhBIWRj0
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Things to do in May
May 06, 2025 | Written by: Sue Barton, Plant Diagnostician* Plant annuals in mid-May. This is after the last potential frost date. * Plant your summer containers with a combination of woody plants, annuals and perennials. -
Delaware teens travel to National LifeSmarts Competition
May 02, 2025 | Written by: Michele Walfred, Communications SpecialistFor the third year in a row, Delaware 4-H was well represented at the National LifeSmarts Competition, held this year in Chicago, IL, at the Marriott Downtown Magnificent Mile, April 24-27, 2025. This year’s competition marked the 31st anniversary of LifeSmarts, the youth consumer education program of the National Consumers League. Forty-six student teams from high schools and various student organizations traveled nationwide to compete in the four-day event. The 2025 Delaware team ended in a multi-way tie for 6th place. -
Bird flu: What you need to know
April 29, 2025 | Article by Michele Walfred and Katie Peikes, Photo illustration by Jeffrey C. ChaseEven though the 2024-2025 migratory bird season is winding down, concerns about highly pathogenic avian influenza — commonly known as bird flu — remain. The public is paying attention. Consumers are experiencing volatility in egg prices and are concerned about food safety. Backyard birders are all a flutter. For poultry farmers and the scientific community committed to protecting them, it’s not a time to kick back and relax. The concern to control bird flu remains a 24-hour, 7-day a week, 365-day effort.
Upcoming Events
History of the Agriculture Research Center in Georgetown
A Delaware General Assembly act provided the establishment of an agricultural substation for southern Delaware. The first structure at the new "Substation" opened in 1942, which is still in use — now as storage space.
A more thorough, published history written by former Extension specialist and former Delaware Secretary of Agriculture, Ed Kee, is now available in the fall of 2019.