Feature Story

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mississippi State University Extension Service agents are not finding jubilant growers beside every cotton field, but the state still should be on target for a new record average yield.

Mississippi's cotton growers harvested a record 901 pounds per acre in 1997, followed by four years between 737 and 642 pounds. Last year, growers were anticipating a new record when a hurricane and a tropical storm hit during harvest and dropped average yields to 808 pounds per acre.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- When trick-or-treaters come knocking this Halloween, they just might be pleasantly surprised by treats that are not of the sweet variety.

Louise Davis, child and family development specialist with Mississippi State University's Extension Service, said children typically enjoy small toys and other candy alternatives as much as traditional treats.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- 4-H in Mississippi is renewing its emphasis on programs aimed to fill the free time youth have after school with fun and educational activities.

Mississippi State University's Extension 4-H Afterschool offers youth programs weekdays between 3 and 6 p.m. Nationally, 4-H has partnered with J.C. Penney and John Deere companies to offer more programs and new curricula to youth after school is out for the day.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- The possibility of a quarantine on cotton produced in five North Delta counties motivated growers to continue in the regionwide boll weevil eradication program by 89 percent, the largest percentage recorded on a Mississippi referendum of this kind.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mississippi's wetter-than-normal summer allowed sod producers to save on irrigation costs, but the rains also delayed some work and harvests.

"The rains were a plus and a minus. Growers were able to cut down on irrigation costs, on moving equipment and on pumping water," said Wayne Wells, turfgrass specialist with Mississippi State University's Extension Service. "But the rains also slowed down sod sales because producers can't harvest when building construction is delayed. If growers have to delay harvest a few weeks, they can't just make that time up."

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Two veterinary students at Mississippi State University are the first to study wildlife populations in the College of Veterinary Medicine's dual-degree program.

But their particular interests in wildlife population health are very different. Brittany Baughman is studying epidemiology, and Ellen Lark is focusing on conservation and reproduction of endangered wildlife populations.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Efforts to teach Mississippi youth financial responsibility have attracted international attention and may help educate South Korean society in many of the same important life lessons.

"Money Matters: Financial Literacy Seminars for High School Students" workshops are being held around the state between September and April. Seminars are sponsored by the Mississippi Jump$tart Coalition and the Office of the Mississippi Secretary of State. The Mississippi State University Extension Service and BancorpSouth are also actively involved.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- The second most common type of cancer in women has an entire month dedicated to its awareness.

October has been set aside as Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Each year, about 43,300 women and 400 men die of breast cancer.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Long before a hunter can display a trophy buck on the wall, a landowner somewhere had to follow a plan that encouraged that buck's growth.

Quality deer management is the strategy used to produce big deer by controlling the environment and deer population. The goal is to produce older bucks with big antlers.

Ben West, assistant professor of wildlife with Mississippi State University's Extension Service, said unmanaged deer populations grow large and tend not to produce the trophy bucks.

By Tricia Hopper

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- As common as cowbells and bulldogs, Mississippi State University's bright red Edam cheese "cannon ball" is easily recognized at tailgates and parties across the state and beyond.

Ever since Edam cheese was first introduced on the Starkville campus in 1938, fans of this dairy delight have made it a university trademark. The Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station's Sales Store sold about 42,000 regular Edam cheese balls during the 2002 Christmas holiday season.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Described as "far superior" to the record-setting 34-bushel-per-acre 1992 crop, 2003 soybeans look to be the best in Mississippi history.

Mississippi State University Extension Service soybean specialist Alan Blaine said the actual per bushel number will exceed the September U.S. Department of Agriculture prediction of 34 bushels.

"Thirty-four bushels per acre is entirely too low. We will have at least 38 to 40 bushels," Blaine said. "Soybean yields this season are exceptional -- the best per acre crop Mississippi has ever harvested."

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- For a group of Mississippi State University alumni, Sept. 26 was a day to give back something of themselves to their alma mater and the students following in their footsteps.

The 18 former MSU students came back to campus to share with current students what they have learned in the real world. The event was the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering's Alumni Career and Research Day, held in the auditorium of the Bost Extension Center.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Irradiation technology significantly decreases the risk of bacteria and parasite contamination in foods, but consumers must still handle the food properly.

Irradiation is the process of exposing food products to radiant energy including gamma rays, electron beams and X-rays in amounts approved by the Food and Drug Administration. The technology is not new, and its increased use over the last few years prompted Mississippi State University's Extension Service to educate area agents about this technology.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mississippi State University's head of therapeutic riding was elected to a two-year term as regional representative of the North American Riding for the Handicapped Association.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Two of Mississippi's biggest fall horticultural crops are nearing harvest's end, and pumpkins appear to be faring slightly better than pecans.

David Ingram, associate plant pathologist at Mississippi State University's Central Mississippi Research and Extension Center in Raymond, said pecan scab has been severe this growing season. The disease causes nuts to fall off the trees too early or not fill out completely.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mississippians have great ideas for innovative products, and Mississippi State University helps make those business dreams a reality.

From manufacturers of hair bows and goat milk soap to billion-dollar furniture manufacturers, no job is too small -- or too big -- for the experts at MSU's Food & Fiber Center.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- In good times and in bad, those trying to gain employment in Mississippi have an ally in the Mississippi State University Extension Service.

The state had a 7.2 percent unemployment rate in July. That figure in recent years has hovered between 5 and 6 percent, but the national recession is being felt statewide. Some large companies have shut down, and many other businesses have laid off workers in an effort to curb expenses and remain profitable.

MISSISSIPPI STATE --"Lions and tigers and bears, oh my," Dorothy exclaimed in the "Wizard of Oz." While there are no lions, tigers or bears, one of Dorothy's traveling companions would feel right at home at the North Mississippi Research and Extension Center in Verona.

The center's Scarecrow Trail opened to the public Sept. 20 and will remain open 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. weekdays through Oct. 17. The trail winds through flower gardens filled with roses, irises and other flowers, and landscape plants. More than 40 scarecrows are strategically located along the garden paths.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Foresters and landowners can learn about tax issues ranging from deducting expenses to taking reforestation credits during upcoming short courses offered across the state this fall.

Debbie Gaddis, forestry tax specialist with Mississippi State University's Extension Service, will teach the six-hour sessions for Webster, Forrest, Lamar, Yalobusha, Jackson, Jasper, Smith, Newton and Adams counties. Foresters and landowners from other counties are invited to attend at the most convenient location.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- A new network is available to let owners of Mississippi microenterprises know they are not alone and to offer them assistance as they grow.

The Mississippi Micro-Enterprise Association Network consists of service providers to microenterprises. The Mississippi State University Extension Service is a charter member of this group that focuses on promoting job creation through microenterprise.