Rothamsted Experimental Station

research station, Harpenden, England, United Kingdom

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July 13, 2026

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The Rothamsted Experimental Station, located in Harpenden, England, is the world's oldest agricultural research station. Founded in 1843 by Sir John Bennet Lawes, an agronomist, and chemist J.H. Gilbert, the station pioneered agricultural research. Lawes, who also founded the artificial fertilizer industry, and Gilbert collaborated for over fifty years, studying the effects of various fertilizers and manures on crops. Their work also extended to animal nutrition. Lawes established the Lawes Agricultural Trust to ensure the continuation of these vital experiments.12

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Sir Henry Gilbert
…research at the newly founded Rothamsted Experimental Station, Hertfordshire, the first organized agricultural experiment station in the world. Their collaboration lasted for more than half a century. In the 1840s they initiated the manufacture of superphosphate fertilizer, one of their inventions. From 1884 to 1890 Gilbert was Sibthorpian professor of…
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…research at the newly founded Rothamsted Experimental Station, Hertfordshire, the first organized agricultural experiment station in the world. Their collaboration lasted for more than half a century. In the 1840s they initiated the manufacture of superphosphate fertilizer, one of their inventions. From 1884 to 1890 Gilbert was Sibthorpian professor of…
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Sir John Bennet Lawes, 1st Baronet
…the artificial fertilizer industry and Rothamsted Experimental Station, the oldest agricultural research station in the world.
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…the artificial fertilizer industry and Rothamsted Experimental Station, the oldest agricultural research station in the world.
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