News

CORINTH -- Marcia Ann Glisson believes in the power of youth.

That’s why she has spent more than 50 years as an Alcorn County 4-H volunteer. And she has no plans to give it up anytime soon.

“It’s just something that is in my blood,” said Glisson, who currently serves as a member of the Alcorn County 4-H Advisory Council. “I was in 4-H, and all four of my children were in 4-H.”

MISSISSIPPI STATE – The impact of last year’s drought on feed costs is not the only challenge poultry growers face in 2013.

Production costs, expansion issues, waste regulations, competition from other meat sources and the next grain crop are major factors impacting the poultry industry this year.

“Some of the corn produced last year had to go to ethanol, so supplies are even tighter and have driven up feed costs,” said Tom Tabler, poultry specialist with the Mississippi State University Extension Service.

By Karen Templeton
MSU College of Veterinary Medicine

MISSISSIPPI STATE – When producer and consultant Dr. Gordon Hazard answers his phone, it is often in the middle of a pasture.

Hazard has been raising cattle for more than 75 years, and his boots-to-the-ground approach is what helps him make a profit each and every year. He knows what Mississippi cattle producers are up against.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Springtime’s soggy fields are no guarantee that summer’s row crops will have the moisture they need to thrive until harvest in the fall.

Jason Krutz, irrigation specialist with the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, said winter and spring rain helps recharge the soil profile, but moisture must be replenished during the growing season.

“In the Delta in the summer, we’re always 10 days from a drought,” Kurtz said. “If you go 10 days without rain, your row crops are in trouble and you will have to irrigate.”

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Some people celebrate Earth Day with a trip on April 22 to the city park, but soil scientists get daily opportunities to see the importance of protecting the environment.

Mississippi State University Extension Service agronomy specialist Keith Crouse said an inexpensive soil test is one of the easiest ways to be a good steward of the earth and enjoy all the land has to offer. As coordinator of the MSU Soil Testing and Plant Analysis Lab, Crouse has seen test results prevent growers from applying unnecessary fertilizers.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Louisiana is shrinking. According to new information from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 25-35 square miles of land off the coast of Louisiana disappears into the water every year.

Mississippi State University environmental economist Daniel Petrolia understands how important the disappearing wetlands are to commercial fisheries, storm surge protection and wildlife.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Mississippi is home to a wide variety of creatures, and warmer spring temperatures bring many of them -- including snakes -- out into the sun.

“We have 35 species of nonvenomous snakes and just 6 species of venomous snakes,” said Adam Tullos, who specializes in wildlife management with the Mississippi State University Extension Service. “We also have snakes that are protected and endangered. Snakes benefit people by keeping insect, reptile and small mammal populations under control.”

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Farmers, landowners and resource managers will find the newest tools to establish and manage a natural resource enterprise at a one-day workshop in Yazoo County.

The May 2 event will begin at 8 a.m. at Field Quest Farms in Benton. The morning presentations include revenue potential, liability and legal concerns, and marketing an outdoor recreational business.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – One of local government’s oldest and most essential jobs is being recognized for its services during an upcoming week of local, national and international activities.

The 44th annual Municipal Clerks Week will be observed May 5 – 11. During this week, municipal clerks in many of Mississippi’s cities, towns and villages will take part in activities to increase the public’s awareness of municipal clerks and the vital services they provide for local government and the community.

With spring in the air and our landscapes waking up from their long winter’s nap, Mississippi gardeners jump into the many chores needed to get gardens off to the right start.

One of the first decisions to be made is what to plant. We flock to garden centers looking for inspiration and new plants to enjoy in the coming year. Sometimes we forget to look in our own gardens for the options we already have.

PICAYUNE -- Louisiana botanist Charles Allen acquired a taste for native plants as a child in his grandmother’s kitchen.

The mountain mint she used in her pork sausage sparked Allen’s interest and led him on a 35-year journey of learning about and preserving native plants that sustain the ecosystem of the Gulf South. Many of those plants are edible and useful around the house.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Mississippi’s strawberry producers may be few in number, but they deliver one of the state’s sweetest and most popular crops.

Growing strawberries in the South is especially challenging because of its variable weather, like that seen this spring.

Wayne Porter, Mississippi State University Extension horticulture specialist in Lauderdale County, said the strawberries struggled because of excessive rain.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Even if their farms were not in the path of the April 11 tornado, hundreds of farmers will feel the loss of the massive communications tower in Noxubee County.

The 300-foot-tall microwave tower located in the middle of a soybean field just northeast of Macon provided about 200 farmers and others with broadband Internet and with GPS signals that guide tractors during fieldwork.

Dennis Reginelli, area agronomics crops agent with the Mississippi State University Extension Service, said alternative sources remain available, but they are less accurate.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Sano Chemical, the company launched to develop an antifungal drug discovered at Mississippi State University, received the university’s Faculty Start-up Company of the Year award April 5.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – A May 23 workshop in Natchez will teach landowners and property managers ways to deal with Mississippi’s wild hog invasion.

The Wild Pig Management Workshop will be held at the Adams County Extension office. The program is provided by the Mississippi State University Extension Service, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services and the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks.

Alternative arrangements are needed before a death or other circumstances interfere with access to online accounts.

Typically, one person in the household takes responsibility for paying the bills online or managing the online banking account. However, if something happens to that person, the whole family’s finances can be in jeopardy.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Well-established and thriving gardens tend to have a mix of plant and animal life, adding interest for gardeners but not as much natural pest control as many people think.

Blake Layton, entomologist with the Mississippi State University Extension Service, said many people enjoy garden fauna such as toads, frogs and lizards, and some even enjoy bats and snakes.

By Rebekah Ray
MSU Delta Research and Extension Center

STONEVILLE – Mississippi State University experts have a new program to help Delta producers irrigate row crops more efficiently and economically.

MSU Extension Service irrigation specialist Jason Krutz is leading a multi-faceted approach to water conservation, dubbed Row-crop Irrigation Science and Extension Research, or RISER. The researchers are working with producers to help reduce irrigation water use while maintaining or improving crop yields and profitability.

By Karen Templeton
MSU College of Veterinary Medicine

FLOWOOD – The Animal Emergency Referral Center staff in Flowood is always ready to handle animal emergencies and has seen just about everything, but recently, a unique patient came in for surgery.

A fishing cat, an endangered medium-sized exotic cat native to South Asia, was brought to the center with a fractured humerus. The exotic cat is part of a breeding program at the Jackson Zoo and needed quick treatment.

HATTIESBURG – When Petal High School students volunteered to eat chocolate-covered insects for a disaster relief fundraiser last year, they had no idea they would be helping their own community.