Forage Team
Specialists

Leonard Lauriault
Title: Forage Crop Management Scientist, Agricultural Science Center at Tucumcari
Office Phone: 575-461-1620
Email: lmlaur@nmsu.edu
Leonard Lauriault has been a Forage Management Scientist at New Mexico State University's Agricultural Science Center at Tucumcari since coming to NMSU in 1997. At NMSU, he has responsibilities for research in irrigated forages for pastures and hay including alfalfa. Leonard holds a B.S. in Agriculture from Berea College, Berea, Kentucky, and an M.S. in Crop Science from the University of Kentucky and is an American Forage and Grassland Council Certified Grassland Professional. Prior to coming to NMSU, he had conducted research on forage crops for 16 years at the University of Kentucky.

Mark Marsalis
Title: Extension Forage Specialist, Agricultural Science Center at Los Lunas
Office Phone: 505-865-7340
Email: marsalis@nmsu.edu
Mark Marsalis is Extension Forage Specialist at New Mexico State University and is located at the Agricultural Science Center at Los Lunas. He received a B.S. in Biological Sciences from Mississippi State University, an M.S. in Plant and Soil Sciences (Forage Ecology) from the University of Tennessee, and a Ph.D. in Agronomy (Forages) from Texas Tech University in 2004. His expertise is in forage and grain crops, with interests in both annual and perennial crops. His current interests and projects include hay and silage production with limited irrigation and sustainability in irrigated and dryland systems.
Abdullah Al Bari
Title: Alfalfa Breeder, NMSU - Las Cruces
Office Phone: 575-646-3405
Email: mabari@nmsu.edu
Md Abdullah Al Bari is an Assistant Professor of Plant Genetics and Crop Breeding at New Mexico State University, leading the Alfalfa Breeding and Genetics Program with the primary focus on cultivar development. He earned a Ph.D. from North Dakota State University specializing in maize genetics and breeding. Dr. Bari previously led maize and wheat breeding programs at Bangladesh Agricultural University. His research focuses on developing climate-resilient and high-yielding alfalfa and forage cultivars for arid and semi-arid regions of New Mexico and beyond.
Cooperating Faculty
Insect, Disease, and Nematode Pests
- Scott Bundy
Entomologist
NMSU - Las Cruces
- Jane Pierce
Extension Entomologist
Agricultural Science Center at Artesia
Weeds
- Leslie Beck
Extension Weed Specialist
NMSU - Las Cruces
Crops & Soils
- John Idowu
Extension Agronomist
NMSU - Las Cruces
Livestock
- Robert Hagevoort
Extension Dairy Specialist
Agricultural Science Center at Clovis
- Jason Turner
Extension Horse Specialist
NMSU - Las Cruces
- Marcy Ward
Extension Livestock Specialist
NMSU - Las Cruces