News Filed Under Agriculture

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Row crop growers in Mississippi expect to plant more corn in 2025 than they did last year, but not as much cotton or as many soybeans.

The National Agricultural Statistics Service, a unit of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, released its annual prospective plantings report March 31. Surveys are conducted with farm operators nationwide during the first two weeks of March each year to collect data on which row crops they plan to plant and how many acres.

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Entering this spring, beekeepers will be tasked with rebounding from the worst winter in over a decade for winter bee mortality.

A nonprofit organization, called Project Apis m., surveyed more than 700 U.S. commercial beekeepers and found they lost 62% of their colonies between July 2024 and February of this year.

Fruit production requires considerable effort, and some fruits require much more care than others -- facts specialists with the Mississippi State University Extension Service keep in mind as they provide research and information support to the industry.

MSU has ongoing blueberry research at the South Mississippi Branch Experiment Station in Poplarville and the Beaumont Horticultural Unit, and muscadine research at Beaumont and the McNeill Research Unit. MSU also has trials and research on blackberries, wine grapes, elderberries, passion fruit and strawberries.

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Until an avian flu vaccine for chickens or other alternative is federally approved, commercial poultry operations in the U.S. will have to keep “stamping out” entire flocks with a confirmed case to prevent further exposure -- just like one in Noxubee County recently had to do.

STONEVILLE, Miss. -- Will Eubank’s new role as an assistant professor and Extension rice specialist at Mississippi State University’s Delta Research and Extension Center, or DREC, is a full-circle moment.

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- The American Relief Act of 2025 extended the 2018 Farm Bill’s benefits until September, providing agricultural producers $31 billion in economic aid. However, farm owners and operators are advocating for improvements as U.S. legislators draft the next Farm Bill.

In late February, producers representing a range of commodities testified before the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee to share their concerns. The series, “Perspectives From the Field: Farmer and Rancher Views on the Agricultural Economy,” lent that forum to growers in all corners of the country.

RAYMOND, Miss. -- A statewide citrus quarantine was issued recently for Mississippi after one of the most serious citrus plant diseases in the world was detected in the state. Citrus greening, also known as Huanglongbing or HLB, was confirmed earlier this year, according to a press release from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, or USDA APHIS. There is no cure for the disease, which is caused by a bacterial infection spread by the Asian citrus psyllid, a gnat-sized insect. Infected trees die within a few years.

An ongoing challenge in farming is finding a way to manage weeds without creating populations that are chemical-resistant.

The scale of modern farming requires the careful use of chemicals as part of the overall management plan to harvest good yields and make a profit. Although an array of government agencies regulate and oversee the use of these chemicals, farmers themselves are among the most cautious with their use.

The Louisiana Red Crayfish goes by many names. Whether you call it a red swamp crawfish, Louisiana crawfish, Louisiana mudbug, or a crawdad, Procambarus clarkia is a striking invertebrate!  

Water management specialists with Mississippi State University have extensive advice for those implementing different irrigation techniques, but they all agree that using soil moisture sensors is the best way to irrigate.

VERONA, Miss. -- Each year, producers come to the North Mississippi Producer Advisory Council meeting to share their research and educational needs with agricultural faculty and specialists at Mississippi State University, and of all the commodity group sessions, the one on beef cattle usually has the highest attendance.

RAYMOND, Miss. -- A large group of agricultural producers and industry professionals met with Mississippi State University personnel during the 2025 Central Mississippi Producer Advisory Council meeting Feb. 18 in Raymond at the Central Mississippi Research and Extension Center. The annual forum provides clients, MSU administrators, researchers, specialists and Extension agents an opportunity to meet in small commodity groups to discuss the research and educational needs of producers in the region.

As happens in every other industry, when costs rise and markets stay flat or decline, farmers look for ways to either cut costs or increase income.

At the Row Crop Short Course hosted in December by the Mississippi State University Extension Service, those in attendance heard about a double-cropping system not yet tried in Mississippi. One presenter gave research data on growing corn and then soybeans in South Carolina as a way to increase the annual income from the same acreage.

Almost 37% of American adults do not get the recommended seven hours of sleep a night, and that lack of sleep is causing some serious problems.
Leslie Woolington, safety specialist with the Mississippi State University Extension Service, said a lack of sleep can affect a person’s productivity, mental and physical health, driving ability and even their chances of getting hurt at work.

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- If egg prices have seemed higher than ever lately, it’s because they are, and consumers can place much of the blame squarely at the feet of the ongoing bird flu outbreak.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported the national average for a dozen eggs was $6.70 on Jan. 31 -- more than 60% higher than just six weeks before on Dec. 20, 2024, when the average was $4.07 per dozen. The average fluctuated mostly between the $1 to $3 per dozen range in 2024 until mid-October.

Insect pests are ongoing issues in row crop farming, and deciding when, how and whether to treat is never a simple decision.
Offered by the Mississippi State University Extension Service, the Row Crop Short Course in December featured sessions informed by MSU’s ongoing research that helps growers make management decisions. Several sessions addressed insect control from a variety of angles.

With highly pathogenic avian influenza, or HPAI, in the environment in Mississippi, owners of backyard flocks have to take extra steps to keep their chickens healthy.

Avian influenza poses an extremely low risk to human health and none to food safety in Mississippi, but its presence poses a risk to backyard flocks and the state’s $3 billion commercial poultry industry.

Are you already thinking about what you will plant this spring and summer? If you are, don’t forget to test your soil. It’s the best way to know if your garden or lawn needs critical nutrients and how much.

BILOXI, Miss. -- A large group of agricultural producers gathered at the 2025 Producer Advisory Council meeting Jan. 14 at the Coastal Research and Extension Center in Biloxi. The annual meeting serves as a forum for agricultural producers to discuss their needs with Mississippi State University personnel, including administrators, researchers, specialists and Extension agents with the MSU Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station and MSU Extension Service.

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Growers in south Mississippi recently shared their research and programming needs with Mississippi State University’s agricultural specialists, and producers in the state’s central and northern areas will soon have their turn.

The MSU Extension Service and Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station will host Producer Advisory Council meetings at three of their research and Extension centers across the state.