News

MISSISSIPPI STATE – A recent Mississippi State University doctoral graduate received a top award sponsored by the International Forest Products Society.

Qi Li accepted the Wood Award at the society’s annual conference in Austin, Tex. for her research paper on the chemical composition of woody feedstock used in biofuel production.

Li's work at MSU’s Forest and Wildlife Research Center focused on finding suitable, fast-growing, renewable resources to replace the use of fossil fuels.

STONEVILLE – Corn and soybean producers as well as others involved in agriculture will benefit from the July 18 Corn and Soybean Field Day at Mississippi State University’s Delta Research and Extension Center.

Registration begins at 10 a.m. in the Charles W. Capps Building. Booths and vendors will showcase some of the latest tools in precision agriculture, irrigation efficiency and application technology until 2:30 p.m.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – A Mississippi State University program for elementary students has been recognized for teaching environmental and natural sciences.

The Youth Environmental Science program received the third place Gulf Guardian Award in the Environmental Justice and Cultural Diversity category. The Gulf of Mexico Program, a consortium sponsored by the Environmental Protection Agency, gives the award annually.

Some summer days -- okay, honestly, most summer days -- seem just too hot to do anything in the garden and landscape. But a couple of tasks will pay off in the long run with better landscape performance. You guessed it: this column is all about mulching and composting.

Whether you are an experienced gardener or have a brown thumb, you can mulch like a pro. Few gardening activities have as much of an impact as mulching. Mulch reduces erosion, influences soil temperature, helps control weed growth and gives your landscape a well-groomed look.

JACKSON -- Seasonal termite swarms cause Blake Layton’s phone to ring off the hook this time of year.

Layton, a Mississippi State University Extension Service entomologist, said all three major termite species in Mississippi mate from January through June in hopes of forming a new colony. Mating season is one of the rare times people see the secretive insects. Sightings often spark suspicion of an infestation.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – For the third year, the Mississippi State University Extension Service will partner with NASA to share hands-on science activities with the state’s young people.

This year, Summer of Innovation camps will be offered in 33 counties and serve 1,400 children and teens. Campers will enjoy all-new activities designed to promote science and space exploration, such as developing a rover that can land on the moon.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Producers are bringing in Mississippi’s amber waves of grain later than usual, but sunny weather has allowed them to make strong progress on the winter wheat harvest during the last two weeks.

Wet conditions that began in February and cooler-than-normal conditions in March, April and most of May delayed the crop’s maturity.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Some people want nothing to do with the insect world, but 26 adults, teenagers and kids paid money to spend a week catching, examining and learning about bugs.

The 20th annual Bug and Plant Camp was underway at Mississippi State University from June 16 to 20. Campers, ranging from veteran teachers to 10-year-olds, participated in five full days and nights of insect work.

Summer is in full swing, and the boys of summer are keeping us entertained in ballparks across this great nation. As college baseball winds up in Omaha and Major League Baseball heads toward the All-Star break, fans are turning to technology to enhance their baseball experience.

BILOXI -- Seafood producers and processors, regulatory agents and other interested individuals can receive training on mandatory procedures for the safe production and handling of seafood during a July 8 workshop.

Specialists with Mississippi State University’s Extension Service and Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station will introduce participants to the principles of the Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point management system for seafood, regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Forage and livestock producers across the state are invited to learn the latest research-based forage management recommendations at a warm-season grass tour at Mississippi State University.

CRYSTAL SPRINGS -- Books are just one of the things children at the Crystal Springs Public Library are digging into during June. Soil is on their lists, too.

Kids enrolled in the Dig into Reading-themed summer library program recently got a lesson on plants from specialists at Mississippi State University’s Truck Crops Branch Experiment Station.

PONTOTOC -- Growers, crop consultants and other agriculture professionals in north Mississippi can learn about the latest crop research and emerging technologies during a July 11 field day.

Researchers and specialists with Mississippi State University’s Extension Service and the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station will host the event at the Pontotoc Ridge-Flatwoods Branch Experiment Station at 8320 Highway 15 South.

JACKSON -- Mississippi State University is offering two deer management workshops in late July and August to landowners, hunters, and professionals working with Mississippi’s white-tailed deer populations.

Mississippi State University’s Extension Service and the College of Forest Resources, along with the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks, will offer the two-day workshops in Starkville and Biloxi.

By Kaitlyn Byrne
MSU Office of Ag Communications

Students interested in veterinary school had an opportunity to get an inside look at the profession during the Mississippi State University College of Veterinary Medicine Veterinary Camp.

During the recent three-day camp, 13- to 16-year-olds attended labs taught by MSU College of Veterinary Medicine faculty and participated in hands-on workshops.

Since it is June, the vitex have begun flowering, and these brilliant blooms are causing many gardeners and nongardeners alike to stop and take notice.

The flowering period for vitex begins in late May on the Gulf Coast and moves on up to north Mississippi in the following weeks. The main flowering period lasts up to six weeks, but flowering continues sporadically for the rest of the summer.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – She is new to Mississippi State University, but her professional track record is well known across the country.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Late-spring cold snaps and untimely freezes have delayed harvests and reduced yields for Mississippi’s 2013 blueberry crop.

George Traicoff of Hernando runs a family owned and operated you-pick operation in DeSoto County. He started Nesbit Blueberry Plantation with 6,000 plants in 1984, and today his family tends 16,000 plants.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Several Mississippi communities are taking on projects designed to help senior adults keep their independence and improve their health.

The Mississippi State University Extension Service has challenged communities to assess the resources they offer senior adults and is helping them develop a plan to strengthen and add to those resources.

RAYMOND -- Mississippi State University will honor the memory of longtime employee Frank T. “Butch” Withers Jr. by naming the Central Mississippi Research and Extension Center in Raymond after him.

Former colleagues, friends and family members will gather at the center at 10:30 a.m. July 10 for a naming ceremony. The event will conclude with a luncheon at noon. The public is invited to attend.