News

By Karen Templeton
MSU Ag Communications

MISSISSIPPI STATE – A group of Mississippi State University students recently participated in a nationwide event to help educate others about the discipline and program they love.

By Karen Templeton
MSU Ag Communications

MISSISSIPPI STATE – The continuing decline of the housing market and the lack of new construction is taking its toll on Mississippi’s turfgrass industry.

Wayne Wells, Mississippi State University Extension turf specialist, said the state’s turf sales are down because of slow home sales and a lack of new construction.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Financial stability may seem impossible during the college years, but students who take the time to learn about money management will reap positive rewards.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Pine beetles are a threat when trees are stressed, but a cost-share program can help Mississippi private forest landowners keep trees healthy.

Andy Londo, forestry professor with the Mississippi State University Extension Service, said proactive management activities, such as periodic thinning, can increase overall forest health and reduce the threat of a Southern pine beetle outbreak.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Only 800 Fulbright U.S. Scholar Fellowships are awarded each year, but Mississippi State University’s Phyllis Miller has been awarded a Fulbright fellowship for the third time in her career.

Miller, a professor in apparels, textiles and merchandising in MSU’s School of Human Sciences, has received a lecturing and research appointment with the College of Engineering at the University of Mauritius. The university, located in the Republic of Mauritius, an island off Africa’s southeast coast, is establishing a new college of fashion.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – A Mississippi State University Extension Service assistant professor will help the university and organizations around the state prepare for disaster situations.

As students across Mississippi head back to college, many have more money invested in technology than they do in food or textbooks.

Unfortunately, few students are prepared for a spilled drink in the laptop, a virus during midterms, burnt dinners that activate the sprinkler system or careless roommates who leave the door unlocked. Precautionary measures to protect devices and renter’s insurance can minimize students’ frustrations and problems.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Mississippi State University’s football team members recently found out they are not the only ones on campus with a national ranking and that representing the “cow college” is a special honor.

MSU’s Bulldogs, ranked No. 20 in the preseason USA Today Coaches’ Poll, will kick-off their 2011 season in Memphis on Sept. 1. MSU’s Jersey herd, on the other hand, is ranked No. 7 by the American Jersey Cattle Association for 2010 milk production.

A lot of gardeners are interested in creating a tropical feeling around their homes, and one of the easiest ways to do this is to add banana plants either in the landscape or in large containers.

If you’re about to quit reading because you think bananas can only be grown in coastal Mississippi and you live elsewhere, stick with me. I hope I can change your mind by describing some of the selections that are hardy for all landscapes in Mississippi.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Increased consumer interest is positively impacting producers of Mississippi’s truck crops, which include fruits, vegetables, nuts and flowers.

Rick Snyder, vegetable specialist with the Mississippi State University Extension Service, said the rapid growth of the local foods movement has increased demand for truck crops.

“With farmers’ markets in nearly every county of Mississippi, producers no longer have to travel far to find an outlet for their produce,” Snyder said. “Some growers sell at two, three or more markets each week.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – The tornadoes that ripped through Mississippi this April damaged about 74,000 acres of forestland in 22 counties, racking up timber losses of more than $30 million. Most of that timber was uninsured, but the results of a survey conducted by Mississippi State University may help change that trend.

Steve Bullard was one of those uninsured. He owns 100 acres of timber in Webster County — 40 acres of 26-year-old plantation pine and 60 acres of mixed pine and hardwood.

CORINTH – A few small seeds and many willing hands transformed an inner city vacant lot into a thriving, productive garden at the Lighthouse Foundation in Corinth.

Alcorn County Extension director Patrick Poindexter said the idea for a community garden in this challenging space took root in the mind of Master Gardener Herman Gray, who recruited other Alcorn County Master Gardeners and local businesses to the project in 2010.

ST. MARTIN – Young chefs put a Mississippi twist on a brunch favorite to create the winning entry in the first-ever Southern Regional 4-H Seafood Cook-Off, held in New Orleans.

Adriana Wilson, Sarah Soares, Cory Martin and Jarod Harris, seniors in the hospitality and tourism management program at St. Martin High School, prepared their Mississippi-Style Crabmeat Benedictine once a week throughout the summer to prepare for the competition, which is part of the Great American Seafood Cook-Off.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – When it comes to national rankings, Mississippi State University is near the top of the list for its prize-winning herd of Jersey cows.

The American Jersey Cattle Association ranked the MSU dairy herd at No. 7 in milk production for 2010. The only university-owned herd to make the top rankings, the dairy herd has been ranked in the top 10 for the last four years. The 35-head Jersey herd is also ranked in the top 10 in all categories for groups of similar size, ranking No. 5 in protein, No. 4 in milk and No. 10 in milk-fat production.

Having the right technology on hand after a natural disaster or emergency can make the difference between being stranded and getting back on the road to recovery quickly.

When putting together an emergency kit, think through technology issues for checking in with loved ones who will be concerned.

When gardeners want to add color to the landscape, they often reach for flowering annuals and perennials. While these colorful flowers always catch the eye, their selection is usually limited at this point of the summer.

Many gardeners never consider buying colorful foliage plants for anything but shady areas, but let me encourage you to reconsider their usefulness. These plants provide color, and you can still find good selections available in the local garden center that you can plant in the heat of summer.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – It’s not the heat or drought but the economy, specifically poor housing starts, that are causing grief for Mississippi’s forestry industry in 2011.

James Henderson, forestry economist and management specialist with the Mississippi State University Extension Service, said the slow economy is hurting the industry.

“There’s no good news for the pulpwood markets, and pine saw timber prices are the lowest they’ve been since the national housing construction downturn started in 2006,” Henderson said.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Two sisters who like bugs and spiders and getting their hands in dirt found their calling from those activities at summer camps hosted by Mississippi State University.

Breanna and Deanna Lyle, twins from Aberdeen, went to their first “bug camp” in the summer before their 11th grade year. Now, the college sophomores are ahead of many classmates as they pursue careers in entomology and in horticulture.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Mississippi State University Extension Service donated 40 refurbished computers to the Monroe County School District for schools in Smithville, a small town recovering from a devastating tornado.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Summertime brings out the flying and sometimes stinging insects in Mississippi, and some of them look a lot alike.

The mostly harmless carpenter bee resembles the sometimes bothersome bumble bee. Both are important pollinators in the Mississippi landscape.

Blake Layton, entomologist with the Mississippi State University Extension Service, said the look-alike carpenter bees and bumblebees are not even in the same entomological family.