Feature Story from 2013

HATTIESBURG -- Mississippi producers expect peanuts to remain a strong commodity in years to come with a steady global demand and new marketing opportunities.

“The demand for peanuts will stay in place because of global economics and population,” said Mike Phillips, plant and soil sciences department head at Mississippi State University. “International markets rely on the United States for this product. And a global population that is expected to exceed 9 billion by 2050 will drive this commodity to be successful.”

MISSISSIPPI STATE – The Mississippi State University Extension Service is strengthening its administrative team by adding a second associate director.

Paula Threadgill, who currently serves as the state program leader for Family and Consumer Sciences and the interim state program leader for the 4-H Youth Development program, will begin her new role as an Extension associate director immediately.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – An aquaculture researcher at Mississippi State University has been named a Fellow of the World Aquaculture Society for his contributions to the advancement of global aquaculture.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Mississippi State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine invites youths with interests in animals and veterinary medicine to apply for a summer camp.

MSU Veterinary Camp will provide a hands-on experience to youths aged 13 to 15. Campers will participate in interactive labs and learn about veterinary medicine from CVM instructors. Students considering a career in veterinary medicine, scientific research or an animal-related field are encouraged to apply.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – After a week of intense competition, 42 animals and their exhibitors qualified for the 44th annual Dixie National Sale of Junior Champions, Mississippi’s premier youth livestock auction.

Thirteen hogs, 12 lambs, nine goats and eight steers were auctioned off at the Mississippi State Fairgrounds’ Trade Mart. For the first time, the animals were sold by the head instead of by the pound to make it easier to calculate multiple buyers’ bids.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Wildlife, fisheries and aquaculture students at Mississippi State University recently received top honors from the Southern Division of the American Fisheries Society.

Members of MSU’s student organization affiliated with the American Fisheries Society received the 2012 Outstanding Subunit Award during the society’s regional meeting held February 7-10 in Nashville. To be considered for the award, student chapters throughout the Southeast submitted a list of activities and community service projects performed throughout 2012 and a letter of recommendation.

STONEVILLE – A long-time researcher with Mississippi State University recently received recognition for outstanding career achievements by the Southern Branch of the American Society of Agronomy.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Body Walk, a larger-than-life model of human body systems, got its first new major components since the program started teaching elementary school children in 2005.

Katie Bouchillon, Body Walk coordinator with the Mississippi State University Extension Service, wrote a grant to fund the facelift for the popular children’s health education exhibit.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Two Mississippi State University row crop researchers recently received recognition at a national conference.

MSU weed scientist Jason Bond was named the 2013 Rice Researcher of the Year at the 2013 Conservation Tillage Systems Cotton and Rice Conference in Baton Rouge, held Jan. 31 and Feb. 1. Bond has conducted research with an emphasis on rice, corn and cotton at MSU’s Delta Research and Extension Center in Stoneville for six years.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – A veteran agricultural economist and administrator at Mississippi State University was recently honored for his achievements and distinguished service to his profession.

Bill Herndon, who serves as the associate vice president of MSU’s Division of Agriculture, Forestry and Veterinary Medicine, received the 2013 Southern Agricultural Economics Associate Lifetime Achievement Award.

The award recognizes significant and enduring contributions in scholarship or public service to southern agricultural economics.

By Meg Henderson
College of Forest Resources

MISSISSIPPI STATE – An international wildlife organization has recognized a Mississippi State University department head for promoting gender and ethnic diversity in natural resource professions.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- As if Mississippi did not already have enough bugs, three new insect pests became established in the state in 2012.

Blake Layton, entomologist with the Mississippi State University Extension Service, said the newest insect residents are two flies and one bug: the spotted wing drosophila, the Bermudagrass stem maggot and the kudzu bug.

“All three pests came from Asia and are here to stay,” Layton said. “They are expected to cause significant economic losses in the crops they affect.”

Spotted wing drosophila …

By Alicia Barnes
MSU School of Human Sciences

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Aiming to better prepare children for kindergarten, the Starkville Rotary Club is providing literacy assessments to local early care and education programs.

Working with an audience much younger than their usual lunch crowd, Rotary members introduced the Between the Lions Preschool Literacy Initiative to 3- and 4-year-olds at Emerson Preschool, the Brickfire Project and First Presbyterian Church Childcare.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Registration for the Mississippi State University College of Veterinary Medicine’s annual open house is under way.

School groups are invited to attend the open house on Friday, April 5 from 8:30 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. at the Wise Center in Starkville. In the past, pre-registration was optional. This year, school groups are required to sign up for the event in advance.

Registration is free. CVM staff will send registered groups parking, schedule and rain date information. Teachers and administrators may order lunches for groups through CVM.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – A Mississippi State University graduate student in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences continues to bring home awards for research he conducted on chemical control of an invasive weed.

Zach Reynolds of Starkville recently won first place in the Master of Science Poster section at the 2013 Southern Weed Science Society annual meeting. His poster was titled “Control of Palmer amaranth with sequential herbicide applications.” Coauthors in MSU’s Department of Plant and Soil Sciences were Darrin Dodds, Tyler Dixon and Chase Samples.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – The generosity of one of Mississippi’s most famous residents attracts veterinary students from diverse cultural backgrounds to the Mississippi State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine.

By Kaitlyn Byrne
MSU Office of Ag Communications

MISSISSIPPI STATE – The path to healthy teeth begins in childhood, and two Mississippi State University programs are working to teach proper dental hygiene.

The Mississippi Childcare Resource and Referral Network, part of MSU’s Extension Service, trains childcare providers to teach healthy dental practices through the Cavity Free Kids program.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – About 200 volunteers who care deeply about the state’s young people will gather in Starkville for leadership training Feb. 22 and 23.

The annual 4-H Volunteer Leaders Conference will be held at the Bost Extension Center at Mississippi State University. Mississippi 4-H is the youth development program of the MSU Extension Service.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Horticulture students at Mississippi State University recently brought home multiple awards from the Southern Region meeting of the American Society for Horticultural Sciences.

Seven undergraduate students competed in commodity evaluation and plant identification in four categories: woody ornamentals, greenhouse crops, vegetable crops, and fruit and nut crops.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mississippi State University showcased top graduate students in a competition described by organizers as “American Idol for agriculture.”

Jason Bond, associate Extension and research professor at MSU’s Delta Research and Extension Center in Stoneville, said the recent “Future of Agriculture Graduate Student Competition” was a win-win-win for students, industry representatives and farmers.