News

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Dr. Kelli Jones of Mississippi State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine has won the World Veterinary Poultry Association Young Veterinarian of the Year award.

Jones, who is a Diplomate of the American College of Poultry Veterinarians and an assistant clinical professor in CVM’s Department of Pathobiology and Population Medicine, is an expert in avian medicine and poultry disease diagnostics. She serves Mississippi’s $2.21 billion poultry industry through her work at CVM’s Poultry Research and Diagnostic Laboratory in Pearl.

February is African-American history month. If celebrating your heritage has you digging for the roots of your family tree, consider using the Internet for help.

Genealogy research is one of the fastest-growing hobbies in America. More and more people want to know where they came from and how they ended up here. The Internet offers many useful tools to those of us who cannot travel to visit historical archives in other states or the Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, D.C.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – New plant hardiness maps released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture increased Mississippi’s average low temperatures by 5 degrees.

Eric Stafne, Mississippi State University assistant Extension professor for fruit crops, said the maps provide good average information, but individuals still must make careful planting decisions.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – African-American couples with long and satisfying marriages credit God, love and communication as keys to their enduring relationships, researchers at Mississippi State University have found.

HAZELHURST – More than 200 Boy Scouts in the Andrew Jackson Council met at Hood Boy Scout Camp in Hazlehurst Feb. 11 for a workshop to help them earn their forestry merit badge.

Instructors from the Mississippi State University Extension Service, Mississippi Forestry Commission, Mississippi Forestry Association and Weyerhaeuser Company taught the scouts about forestry resources, stewardship and the forestry profession.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Dr. Locke Karriker was presented the College of Veterinary Medicine’s 2012 Alumnus of the Year Award at Mississippi State University.

Karriker, who currently serves as the director of the Swine Medicine Education Center at Iowa State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, grew up in North Carolina’s coastal area and cultivated an interest in agriculture at an early age.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – The 2012 Dixie National Sale of Junior Champions was the most successful sale to date, bringing in almost $300,000.

If you’re like me and constantly looking for true blue flowers, you will want to be sure to make a place in your garden for the blue butterfly plant.

I enjoy spring, when greenhouses and garden centers start offering all sorts of new and exciting plants for our Mississippi landscapes and gardens. I’m always on the lookout for blue flowers to include in the landscape.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Wheat stripe rust was spotted in Mississippi and Arkansas in January, an unusual occurrence this early in the year made possible by the warm and wet winter.

These occurrences are the first reports of the disease east of the Rockies this year.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – The Mississippi State University Extension Service will offer an online webinar series from Feb. 16 through March 22 for landowners and those interested in wildlife and fisheries enterprises.

Six sessions will be held on consecutive Thursdays at 11:30 CST for registered participants in five states: Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee, Alabama and South Carolina.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Five entertaining and educational midday programs will prepare area gardeners for the fourth annual Everything Garden Expo March 24 and 25 at the Mississippi Horse Park in Starkville.

The Starkville Area Arts Council will team up with Mississippi State University and other sponsors to present midweek programs and the area’s premier garden show.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Time, experience and research findings show no-till farming can boost production, prevent soil erosion and transform hayfields and pastures into viable cropland.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Producing and using alternative energy is more important now than ever before, and scientists at Mississippi State University’s Forest and Wildlife Research Center are focusing on timber as a possible source for energy.

Valentine’s Day is perhaps the hardest holiday for computer geeks because it requires two things we are not overly fond of -- public displays of affection and people.

Christmas tends to be a very easy holiday for us because we can do all of our shopping online. Birthdays are much the same. Valentine’s Day often requires a conversation with a florist, which is usually someone we don’t know. Because ordering flowers online doesn’t really count as a carefully chosen, personal gift, it usually isn’t an option.

Purple coneflowers are a flowering Mississippi native perennial that can really make a statement in your home garden and landscape.

The plant’s name comes from the beautiful purple flowers that seem to attract an endless number of butterflies and bees, especially all sorts of bumblebees. Traditionally, flower colors range from pastel purplish-pinks to deep, dark, vibrant burgundies.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Mississippi State University researchers and graduates received top awards this year from the Southern Weed Science Society.

Dan Reynolds, a Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station researcher and professor in MSU’s Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, was named the 2012 weed scientist of the year by the society, the highest honor awarded.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – The fourth annual Mississippi State University Extension Service Commodity Advisory Council meeting will be held Feb. 28 at the Coastal Research and Extension Center in Biloxi.

Producers of various commodities will have the opportunity to evaluate and provide direction on Extension educational programming for their products and crops.

CLARKSDALE – Ongoing conservation efforts earned the Coahoma County office of the Mississippi State University Extension Service the title of Earth Team state winner.

The staff won the state 2011 Natural Resources Conservation Service Earth Team Field Award winner after at the local and district levels. They received the award Jan. 19 at the 2012 Mississippi Association of Conservation District Volunteer luncheon in Jackson.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Recognizing that women are vital to the success of the family farm, Mississippi State University’s Extension Service is organizing a series of six workshops to improve the skills they need.

“Mississippi Women for Agriculture: Annie’s Project” is a national program designed for women of all ages who are interested in agriculture or related matters.

Small businesses can entice local customers with online coupons and discounts just like the big box stores do.