News

PICAYUNE -- The public can look back at the early days of Mississippi’s Piney Woods region during the 12th annual Piney Woods Heritage Festival on Nov. 14 and 15.

The traditional skills, crafts and arts of the region’s people will be displayed at the Mississippi State University Crosby Arboretum in Picayune.

Visitors will view educational displays and skills demonstrations including blacksmithing, quilting, spinning, basket-making and more.

This weekend, the thermometer in my garden got down to the low 30s and left me wondering if I’ve seen the last of my tomatoes and peppers. But it also reminded me that it’s time to transition to plants that thrive in lower temperatures.

Ornamental kale is one of my favorites for the cool season. There are so many different colors and leaf textures to add landscape interest. Don’t plant a single type. Mix and match for increased visual interest.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mississippians love holiday recipes with pecans, but an off year may make the nuts more expensive and harder to find.

Eric Stafne, associate Extension and research professor at the Mississippi State University Coastal Research and Extension Center, said the state’s pecan crop is forecast at 1 million pounds. The state produced 5 million pounds last year, and Mississippi’s average pecan harvest is 2-3 million pounds.

By James E. “Jim” Miller
Professor Emeritus, Department of Wildlife Fisheries and Aquaculture
MSU Extension Service

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Hunting is about individual responsibility. Aldo Leopold, the father of wildlife management, said, “A particular virtue in wildlife ethics is that the hunter ordinarily has no gallery to applaud or disapprove of his conduct. Whatever his acts, they are dictated by his own conscience, rather than by a mob of onlookers. It is difficult to exaggerate the importance of this fact.”

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Producers who register by Nov. 26 will attend the annual Mississippi State University Row Crop Short Course for free and gain information to make them more productive and profitable.

The 2014 Row Crops Short Course will be held at the Bost Extension Center at MSU Dec. 1-3. Those who register after Nov. 26 must pay $40 to attend.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Soil-dwelling nematodes cannot be seen with the naked eye, but the damage they do to crops shows up in dollar signs.

“We have a tremendous problem in Mississippi soybeans since multiple nematode species can impact soybean producers,” said Tom Allen, Extension plant pathologist at Mississippi State University’s Delta Research and Extension Center in Stoneville. “Nematodes can bring a soybean crop to its knees, and other crops in the state suffer losses from these parasites as well.”

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- A Mississippi State University College of Veterinary Medicine veterinary resident has received a national award for neurological research.

RAYMOND -- Many Mississippians enjoy the sport of hunting wild pigs, but trapping is a better way to control the rapidly growing population that is destroying forests, damaging agricultural resources and threatening native wildlife in the state.

Many Southerners (in general) and Mississippians (in particular) base their new plant selections on the annual recommendations from the Mississippi Medallion Selection Committee. The committee has just announced three winners for 2015: Delta Jazz crape myrtle, Suburban Nancy Gayle daylily and Top Pot scaevola.

Delta Jazz crape myrtle…

RAYMOND -- Pumpkins are popping up on porches across Mississippi, but some growers had trouble getting them there.

Many Mississippi pumpkin farmers experienced heavy disease pressure and a delayed harvest due to frequent summer rains.

Growers planted more acres this year, but harvested fewer pumpkins than usual, said Stanley Wise, Union County agriculture and natural resource enterprise and community development agent with the Mississippi State University Extension Service.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Bats are popular, but often misunderstood, Halloween symbols. These strange-looking mammals generate fear among children and adults alike, but the truth about bats is really quite fascinating.

With more than 1,200 species worldwide, bats are divided into two suborders -- Microbats and Megabats. All bats have webbed wings, making them the only mammal capable of true flight. Bats are present throughout the world, with the exception of Antarctica and the northernmost parts of North America, Europe and Asia.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- A Mississippi State University plant virologist has been invited to join the prestigious executive committee of the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses, or ICTV.

Sead “Sejo” Sabanadzovic, a professor in the MSU Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Entomology and Plant Pathology, was elected to the elite group of 18 international experts who serve as the leading authority on describing, identifying, naming and classifying viruses. Sabanadzovic is one of only three plant virologists on the executive committee.

INDIANOLA -- The Mississippi Make it in America team is providing a free Reshoring Opportunities Workshop Oct. 30 at the Capps Center in Indianola, Mississippi.

The workshop’s goal is to assist companies in bringing advanced jobs back to Mississippi by enhancing skills and building competitiveness. Several units within Mississippi State University are part of this effort, including the Franklin Furniture Institute in the Division of Agriculture, Forestry and Veterinary Medicine.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- The Mississippi State University Extension Service is promoting diabetes awareness in a series of health fairs.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- The Early Years Network was well received during its recent tour across Mississippi to introduce the new one-stop shop for child care providers and families.

The Early Years Network is a system of support services that is approved by the Mississippi State University Extension Service and its partners and receives funding from the Mississippi Department of Human Services, Division of Early Childhood Care and Development.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Southern storms mean a lot of unusual things show up on weather radar, but swarming insects usually are not the first thing that come to mind.

Jason Simpson, chief meteorologist at WHNT-TV in Huntsville, Alabama and a 2001 geosciences graduate of Mississippi State University, noticed some trends on live radar Sept. 4 that made him and other professionals wonder if they were seeing insects. Colored areas that typically indicated precipitation appeared on screen on a sunny day.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Most Mississippi State University horses arrive on campus in the spring educating students about the foaling process and leave in November teaching them about auctions.

The annual horse sale will take place in a nontraditional setting as about 20 horses, ages 6 months to 12 years, are sold online Nov. 15 through 21.

Gardens and landscapes work really hard to give us so much beauty and bounty, so sometimes it’s nice for gardeners to give something back to the earth.

Fall is a really good time to build up your garden soil for next year. Probably the best gift you can give your garden is to amend its soil with organic matter.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- The sight of a flickering camp fire. The glow of faces bathed in warm firelight. The sound of crickets chirping in the background.

Research shows connecting with nature and one another is helpful to hurried and task-weary souls. Camping is one way to relax, get outdoors and reconnect with loved ones. If you have never experienced the rewards of camping, fall is the perfect time to try it.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- The major storm that passed through the state Oct. 13 brought a lot of wind and rain but caused little damage to the state’s row crops, because most of them were already harvested.

According to U.S. Department of Agriculture figures released Oct. 12, harvest was 87 percent complete for rice, 74 percent complete for soybeans, 98 percent complete for corn and 85 percent complete for sorghum. Only 38 percent of cotton had been harvested when the storm hit.