News

Every spring, I look forward to seeing wisterias bloom. It’s incredible how high these vines can climb into trees. They are a familiar sight along roadsides, and I really enjoy the 55-mile-per-hour flower show I get as I drive along the highways in Mississippi.

In this setting, these vigorous and aggressive vines seem to be out of reach for the ordinary home landscape. But wisteria vines can actually be used in a more confined space, assuming you are committed to keeping the vine in place through training and pruning.

The fastest-growing segment of Facebook users in the United States is senior citizens. Unfortunately, many seniors feel lost when it comes to Facebook and other social media.

A common refrain I hear from many seniors is that social media is something that has passed them by or they just aren’t sharp enough to keep up with all this new-fangled technology. This is regrettable because our seniors have a great deal to offer. In fact, most of the information younger generations are looking up on sites like Google, YouTube and Pinterest are things most seniors already know.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- The Rose Hill Cemetery in Meridian is not only the final resting place of the renowned Gypsy Queen, it is also the first site in North America where a particular type of sedge from Eurasia was found.

A four-man team spent five years gathering data for a floristic survey of Lauderdale County. They discovered the sedge during the study, and now, anyone wanting to know if a certain plant is found in the Meridian area can get their answer in the current issue of the journal Rhodora.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Parental monitoring is critical to the health and well-being of adolescents, whether the issue is Internet use or behavior in general.

Tommy Phillips, assistant professor in Mississippi State University’s School of Human Sciences, said although parents do not want to look over their teen’s shoulders constantly, a reasonable level of supervision is essential.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Local municipal governments are providing insight into their use of the Internet so the Extension Broadband Education and Adoption Team can develop recommendations to improve services to residents and businesses.

Roberto Gallardo, assistant Extension professor at Mississippi State University’s Southern Rural Development Center, said the survey results are a gold mine of helpful information about the state’s municipalities, one of e-BEAT’s core audiences.

STARKVILLE -- The Mississippi Horse Park at Mississippi State University hosted nearly double the number of last year’s contestants at the American Quarter Horse Association’s Quarter Horse show March 10 and 11.

The oldest Quarter Horse show in the state of Mississippi has grown quickly over the past two years. In its 53rd year, the AQHA is still going strong, and contestants have been reaping the benefits of the new, more affordable flat entry fee.

JACKSON -- The Crosby Arboretum Foundation will host authors Susan Haltom and Jane Roy Brown beginning at noon on March 31 to discuss the restoration of the Eudora Welty garden.

Haltom and Brown co-authored “One Writer’s Garden: Eudora Welty’s Home Place” in which they discuss the restoration of the garden at Welty’s home and the garden’s historic importance to landscaping. They will speak as part of the Jean Chisholm Lindsey Lecture in Landscape Design.

If there’s a single shrub that could be called a staple in the Southern landscape, it has to be the azalea. Its spectacular flowering has made the azalea one of the all-time most popular landscape shrubs.

Here on the coast, azaleas have been putting on a show since they began blooming in early March. The progression of blooms will continue to north Mississippi by early April. One of the earliest-blooming varieties is the Southern Indica azalea. Whether used as specimen plants, hedges or backgrounds, the Southern Indica has to be my favorite azalea.

Spring break is just around the corner, and children everywhere are gearing up and packing up to head to their grandparents’ homes. In turn, grandparents are frantically searching for activities to keep the grandkids busy.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- A fibrous plant researched at Mississippi State University may end up at the Olympics in the form of a specialty gun stock.

“We’re exploring how to make a commercial product out of an agricultural byproduct and kenaf, a quick-growing plant,” said Dan Seale, forest products professor in MSU’s Forest and Wildlife Research Center.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- The Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture honored Mississippi State University associate professor Michael Seymour with the national 2012 Excellence in Teaching Award.

Seymour has taught in MSU’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences in the Department of Landscape Architecture for seven years. He has distinguished himself as an outstanding educator, researcher and colleague, said Sadik Artunc, head of the landscape architecture department.

MISSSSIPPI STATE -- Community gardens have gained popularity in Mississippi recently because they can improve health and environmental sustainability.

By Kaitlyn Byrne
MSU Ag Communications

MMISSISSIPPI STATE -- Tunica County 4-H is striving to help kids and teens achieve healthier lifestyles through a new program called Move to Lose.

Ebony Jones, Tunica County 4-H agent, started the Move to Lose program in September after she saw an interest in a healthier lifestyle among her 4-H’ers.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- A storm-resistant landscape design and consistent tree health monitoring can save cities and property owners time and money.

“Well-designed landscapes are easier to maintain and reduce the risk of damage from a fallen tree or limb,” said John Kushla, a Mississippi State University Extension Service forestry specialist and associate research professor in the Forest and Wildlife Research Center.

Good design helps trees weather storms more easily.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mississippi State University’s program aimed at getting high school students interested in medical careers is taking applications until March 21.

The Rural Medical Scholars program is a five-week, residential program for rising high school seniors. Other than the $60 registration fee, there is no cost to attend the program. Those who successfully complete the program will have taken two college pre-med courses and learned more about the medical field while shadowing professionals on the job.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- A veterinarian at Mississippi State University has been named the state’s top veterinarian, an honor that has now come to MSU’s College of Veterinary Medicine three times.

Dr. Carla Huston, associate professor in the Department of Pathobiology and Population Medicine, was named the Mississippi Veterinarian of the Year by the Mississippi Veterinary Medical Association. The award was announced at the 2012 MVMA winter meeting in Starkville.

As gardeners look forward to the spring planting season, many go in droves to the various garden shows and displays to see some of the newest and flashiest flowers on the market. This weekend at the Gulf Coast Garden & Patio Show was no exception.

Mississippi gardeners got the chance to see the new Mississippi Medallion-winning plants for 2012. This year’s flowering plant winner is Vista Bubblegum supertunia. The flowers are a clear, bright pink and have performed well in Mississippi gardens the past few years.

With the price of gasoline on the rise, many families are opting to stay close to home for their spring break vacation, and planning is as important for a staycation as it is for an overseas trip.

To ensure a fun time is had by all, even the youngest in the group, create a staycation passport using either your computer’s clip art or the site http://tinyurl.com/staycationclipart.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Extension specialists are studying water wells in Mississippi to develop educational information on maintenance and water quality for well owners, drillers and others.