News

By Chantel Lott

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Summertime is a traditional season for outdoor celebrations and reunions, but those enjoyable occasions can turn sour if foodborne illness shows up as the ultimate unwanted guest.

About 7 million Americans suffer from food poisoning each year, but 85 percent of those cases could be avoided with proper handling of food.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

Dragon Wing has got to be the most beautiful begonia for planters or the landscape. While it works great in full sun, the look in partial shade is absolutely awesome.

The Dragon Wing has really just hit the market this year. It has been sold under the name Sunbrite on a limited basis. It is kind of funny that it has been around for close to 20 years, but many of us have failed to recognize the beauty and durability of the plant.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Thrips are the only ones having a field day in Mississippi's cotton as the mild winter and dry, windy conditions have growers scouring their crops and the skies for relief.

Blake Layton, cotton entomologist with Mississippi State University's Extension Service, said thrips are more abundant than normal, but in numbers similar to last year.

By Chantel Lott

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mosquitoes may be a summertime nuisance to people, but their threat of transmitting heartworms to dogs is year round in Mississippi.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

If you are looking for a plant for the shade, then you can hardly do better than hostas. The hosta is in the lily family and has the common name of Plantain Lily. Despite the fact that they are cold hardy way up north in zone 4, their beauty and leaf texture adds a tropical flair to the garden.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- When parents and coaches set good examples, team sports do more for kids than teach them the rules of the game and get them in shape.

Playing on a team is one of the best ways for children to learn life lessons as they see responsibility, respect, fairness and sportsmanship modeled. Coaches are in the unique position to mold their athletes' character on and off the playing field, and parents on the sidelines can reinforce these positive messages.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Normally, hay growers do not get nervous about a drought until July, but this is not likely to be a normal year.

The last soaking rain is a vague memory for most growers and by mid-May, conditions were more like July.

By Rebekah Ray

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Seaweed may be an anomaly in North Mississippi, but animal researchers at the Prairie Research Unit in Monroe County are using this marine algae to improve production of the state's beef cattle.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- When Mississippians need information, the Extension Service is ready with a variety of tools to get the facts into their hands.

When personal knowledge falls short, they can turn to the Mississippi State University Extension Service. Extension is the arm of the state's land-grant institution responsible for taking the knowledge of the university to the people of the state. It does this through agents in each county, short courses, field days, demonstrations, workshops and Internet resources.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

Every state has wildflowers they boast about, and Mississippi can certainly hold its head high in this category as well. Flowers like the coreopsis and spigelia, or Indian Pinks, have been awesome. The Stokes' Aster is one of my favorite wildflowers budding up now and showing color in many gardens.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Late freezes and a predicted light pecan crop are dampening prospects for Mississippi's fruit and nut growers, but growers haven't given up on the year.

Freddie Rasberry, horticulture specialist with Mississippi State University's Extension Service, said last year had the potential of being the state's best pecan year since the 1994 ice storm caused extensive damage to Delta orchards. Because pecans ordinarily are alternate bearing fruit, bumper crops are often followed the next year by much smaller harvests.

By Suzanne Berry

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Milk. It does a body good, especially a dairy calf's body.

Recently completed research at the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station's Coastal Plain Branch in Newton has shown that immunity levels of newborn dairy calves that were tube-fed colostrum at birth were higher than those that nursed their mothers.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

It seems the gardening world has gone crazy with arbors, trellises, towers, fences and more. Everyone is looking for perfect or unusual vines to drape or climb these structures. One of the best choices is the crossvine.

It is also called quartervine and is known botanically as Bignonia capreolata. It is hardy throughout the state. Bignonia comes from the name of King Louis IV's librarian.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Handing over a portion of profits may seem like bad business, but Mississippi farmers use checkoff programs to promote success in the future.

Checkoff programs are a form of self-tax that require producers by law to set aside a certain portion from each unit sold. This money is collected by the governing board and distributed for industry research and promotion.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Grass, something Mississippi's climate is well-suited for growing, has become a serious cash crop to turf producers taking advantage of booming population centers.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Better eggs mean better broilers, a fact that prompted one Mississippi State University researcher to look at what a hen must eat to lay these good eggs.

Mississippi's $1.5 billion poultry industry is the state's largest agricultural commodity. When even a small improvement is made in this business, the result is seen in millions of dollars.

By Rebekah Ray

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Historically plagued by Mother Nature and the whims of consumer demand, today's agricultural producers have more opportunities to receive advice on managing their risks and producing a profitable crop.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

It can be considered a thornless rose for the shade. It could be thought of as a rose with virtually no disease or insect problems, or as a rose that blooms all season and never needs deadheading. While there is no such rose, the plant I refer to is the rose-form, or double, impatiens.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- What blueberries lack in size they make up for in their economic impact in Mississippi's economy.

Jerry Hutto, a blueberry grower in Waynesboro, said he believes there is more money in blueberries per acre than in any other crop. He estimated that there are 2,000 acres of commercial blueberries in Mississippi.

"In a good year, growers may average 7,000 to 8,000 pounds per acre. This year, we may produce 3,000 to 5,000 because of the late freeze," Hutto said. "Two good years in a five-year period will more than offset the bad years."

By Suzanne Berry

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- The overpopulation of domestic cats gone wild can cause health problems for humans and their pets, but with help from Mississippi State University's veterinary students, Tunica area residents can rest a little easier.

Non-sterilized domestic cats that have been abandoned by their owners produce wild offspring that likely never will have human contact. These wild offspring are referred to as feral cats.