News

By Patti Drapala
MSU Ag Communications

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mississippi State University researchers are developing a biological map of how three tiny pathogens cause big losses for cattle producers each year.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Two Mississippi State University professors and an MSU alumnus are included in Outdoor Life 25, a group of leaders, innovators, conservationists and unsung heroes who have made major contributions to hunting, fishing and other outdoor sports.

Richard M. Kaminski, Marty Brunson and James Earl Kennamer are among the 25 selected by readers of Outdoor Life magazine for their leadership, innovation and conservation efforts. This is the first year for the award.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

When we were filming a Christmas Southern Gardening TV segment on cyclamen, we should not have been hit with spring fever, but that is what happened to us in November 2006.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Her future registered name may be different, but around the horse unit at Mississippi State University, everyone calls her Popsicle.

Born in September, Popsicle is the result of MSU's first successful frozen embryo transfer in horses. University veterinarians have performed embryo transfers in recent years, but the freezing process takes the complicated procedure one step further.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Bugs are just pests for most people, but a group of Mississippi State University scientists is working to make insects an important crop.

BILOXI -- The team of professionals at Mississippi State University's Coastal Research and Extension Center provides services to all parts of the state's seafood industry.

Extension professor of marine resources Dave Burrage, with assistance from fisheries technologist Peter Nguyen, provides educational programs on regulations, new types of equipment and other industry-related issues for commercial fishermen on the Mississippi Coast.

BILOXI -- Shrimp boats and their tasty harvest are part of the image most people have of the Mississippi Gulf Coast, but other important seafood crops are pulled from the waters of the Gulf.

Before Hurricane Katrina, the oyster industry pumped about $100 million into the Mississippi economy each year. Oysters contribute to the economies of all the Gulf Coast states, and these states traditionally harvest the majority of the U.S. domestic oyster supply.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- A long-time volunteer leader with the Mississippi 4-H Program is the state’s newest member of the national organization’s Hall of Fame.

Hobson Waits of Brandon was inducted in October during ceremonies held at the National 4-H Council headquarters in Chevy Chase, Md. He was a member of 4-H during his youth in Washington County in the 1940s and 1950s.

“Once you are involved with 4-H, you don’t want to let go,” Waits said. “People may become involved at another level within the organization, but they never leave.”

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

No tree can paint a picture in the landscape quite like the Ginkgo biloba. I recently wrote about the Autumn Blaze red maple and how its fiery scarlet oranges were lighting up landscapes, and now it's the Ginkgo tree's turn.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

Once again I am surprised by the fall leaf color, especially after the drought across so much of the region. Native hickories are showing outstanding golden orange color, but the stalwart performer in many landscapes is the Autumn Blaze red maple.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Several students at Mississippi State University are excelling in a field that did not even exist when they were born.

In a program that combines the fields of biology, chemistry, physics and engineering, MSU biological engineering and biochemistry and molecular biology students are constructing DNA “machines” to do jobs at the genetic level. “Synthetic biology” is the term used for the new field of study that emerged in the late 1990s.

By Andrea Cooper
College of Forest Resources

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Research by scientists at the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station is reaping benefits for Nature's Catch, the largest pond-based producer of hybrid striped bass in the United States.

For more than 11 years, MSU researchers Lou D'Abramo and Terry Hanson have worked with managers of the Clarksdale-based aquaculture enterprise to develop a more efficient culture system for rearing hybrid striped bass.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mississippi State University students proved again this year in two competitions that they are among the best in the country at determining the quality of dairy products.

Five MSU students competed in a group of 60 students in October at the National Dairy Products Evaluation Contest in Las Vegas. The team placed fifth among the 20 teams, and graduate student Robert Anderson finished second in overall product rankings.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Clergy across the state are being asked to lend their support to efforts to improve marriages in Mississippi, and a series of summits is planned over seven days in late November and early December to better equip them for the task.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- The sights, scents and sounds of the holiday season will dazzle visitors during the Holiday Open House hosted by the Mississippi State University Department of Plant and Soil Sciences and The University Florist Nov. 30.

Poinsettias of 58 varieties in shades of red, pink and white, as well as a few novelty-type plants, will be on display during the open house located in the greenhouses behind Dorman Hall on Stone Boulevard. The greenhouses will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

With cold weather arriving and the holiday season nearly upon us, I could write about fall leaf color or cool season flowers, but I cannot pass up the opportunity to tell you about Blue Fortune agastache.

By Patti Drapala
MSU Ag Communications

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- A little motivation and moderation may be the best strategy for individuals with chronic illnesses to survive the holidays with their health intact.

By Courtney Coufal
MSU Ag Communications

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- The holiday season can be a great opportunity to bring families closer together as children are out of school and parents take time off from work.

Extra days at home during the holidays can create a natural opportunity for families to spend time together, said Tabitha Staier, family education and policy specialist with the Mississippi State University Extension Service.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- The holidays fall in the middle of the annual flu season, increasing the need to avoid the spread of germs.

Jane Clary, health specialist with Mississippi State University's Extension Service, said visits to and from loved ones from other regions can hasten seasonal influenza's progress across the country and the globe. Every year there is the potential for seasonal flu to become pandemic, which is a disease outbreak that spans the world.