News From 2009

By Patti Drapala
MSU Ag Communications

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mississippi producers can finish planting a potentially good corn crop in the next month if Mother Nature will spot them good weather.

Frequent rains in some areas of the state in the last two months have saturated soil, keeping fields too wet to plant. Cold temperatures in other areas have not allowed soil to stay warm enough to germinate seeds and to encourage growth in emerged seedlings.

By Karen Templeton
MSU Ag Communications

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Cattle and dairy producers stand to benefit from cutting-edge genetic research conducted by scientists around the world and at Mississippi State University.

More than 300 scientists from 25 countries formed a consortium to fully map the bovine genome. The study, partially funded by Mississippi’s Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, was conducted over six years and has proven successful as researchers developed a blueprint of the bovine’s DNA.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- The so-called swine flu has not been detected in any U.S. hogs, and no Mississippians have been diagnosed in the initial cases, but the outbreak signals the need for continued health precautions even as seasonal flu cases subside.

Dr. Bill Epperson, head of pathobiology and population medicine with Mississippi State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, said this new strain of the classic H1N1 virus is misnamed when referred to as swine flu.

By Karen Templeton
MSU Ag Communications

MISSISSIPPI STATE – An interactive learning program administered by Mississippi State University helps children get inside the human body and understand that lifestyle choices made at early ages have a direct impact on adult health.

Sponsored by MSU’s Extension Service, 4-H and Blue Cross/Blue Shield, Body Walk is a free, traveling exhibit of the human body with 10 interactive learning stations. Each station teaches children in a fun way about the human body and how to make healthy choices.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mississippi State University’s Division of Agriculture, Forestry and Veterinary Medicine recognized three graduates as the latest Alumni Fellows inductees.

The newest College of Forest Resources Alumni Fellow is James Earl Kennamer of Edgefield, S.C. Kennamer is the senior vice president of conservation programs for the National Wild Turkey Association. Kennamer received his master’s degree in wildlife management in 1967 and a doctorate in wildlife management in 1970.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

If you are one of many gardeners wondering what native plants to put on your arbors or trellises, consider honeysuckle.

Mention the word honeysuckle, and many people get as irritated as they do when imagining bamboo or kudzu in their gardens. Of course, most are thinking of the Japanese honeysuckle, Lonicera japonica.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – A May 7 workshop is designed to help current and potential fruit and vegetable growers and farmers’ market managers boost profits.

There are 54 active farmers’ markets in the state and more are started each year. These have become more popular as customers understand the benefits of buying fresh, locally grown produce.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Dairy farmers have seen demand for their product sour at a time when it has never cost more to produce milk, and many are selling cows to cut costs.

John Anderson, agricultural economist with the Mississippi State University Extension Service, said milk prices per hundredweight were $13.23 in March and have been $14.66 in April. Farmers got $21.78 per hundredweight for fluid milk a year ago.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – The 8th annual Catch the Vision benefit to help fund outdoor adventures for children with life-threatening and terminal illnesses promises sponsorship packages to fit every budget and fun for all who participate.

This year’s event will include the Shotgun Jamboree and banquet dinner on May 16. The funds raised at the events go directly to the Catch-A-Dream Foundation, housed at Mississippi State University. The foundation provides outdoor adventure trips for children with life-threatening conditions.

By Patti Drapala
MSU Ag Communications

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- It is no secret that many ants live beneath the leaves, bark and soil of the Noxubee National Wildlife Refuge, but no one knew how diverse the population was until Mississippi State University entomologists dug up the facts.

By Patti Drapala
MSU Ag Communications

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Spiders may have webs, but the ants of the Southeast have something that lasts a little longer than spun silk – their own Web page.

Joe MacGown, ant curator of the Mississippi Entomological Museum at Mississippi State University, built the page to make information easily available on different ant species found in southeastern states.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

If you choose the right flowers, your garden can have an exciting, festive atmosphere all summer long. If you’re looking for the life of the garden party, you need to look for the 2009 Mississippi Medallion award-winner Senorita Rosalita.

This outstanding new cleome creates interest and excitement in the garden by offering an intricate, spidery flower structure.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Explorers ages 10 and up who want to learn more about the relationship between insects and plants should plan to attend Mississippi State University’s annual 4-H Entomology and Horticulture Camp this summer.

This year’s camp is June 14-18 at MSU. Hosting the event are the Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, and the Noxubee National Wildlife Refuge.

By Karen Templeton
MSU Ag Communications

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Mississippi State University veterinary students learn in the classroom and in the laboratory, but the real test comes when they add in the responsibility of staging the spring open house and teaching the public about animal care and welfare.

For more than two decades, MSU’s College of Veterinary Medicine has welcomed children and families to its annual open house. This year, the April 3-4 event was attended by 3,800 visitors.

By Patti Drapala
MSU Ag Communications

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Many south Mississippi farmers have rotated peanuts with corn, soybeans and other crops to get through tough times, and word is spreading that this strategy can work for their counterparts in the northeast part of the state.

Peanuts make a good rotational crop because they are drought-tolerant, require less labor than other alternatives and have good loan assistance support. The marketing assistance loan for peanuts is $355 per ton, which in the minds of many farmers, beats “50-cent cotton.”

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Exposed, termites are small and defenseless, but hidden and in high numbers, these insects can destroy a house from the inside out, causing homeowners untold expense and grief.

Blake Layton, an entomologist with Mississippi State University’s Extension Service, said termites are a dangerous threat to homes.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

Gardeners across the country cherish phlox, but it is one of dozens of plants that get passed over because it is typically not in bloom when it’s shopping time.

By Karen Templeton
MSU Ag Communications

MISSISSIPPI STATE – A new Mississippi State University study shows that when it comes to horticulture, the right combination of machinery and human laborers can cultivate positive results for this growing industry.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Dr. Lanny Pace, executive director of the Mississippi Veterinary Diagnostic and Research Laboratory System, was presented the National Institute for Animal Agriculture’s President’s Award at the annual meeting March 31 in Louisville, Ky.

The President’s Award is given to an NIAA committee chairman in recognition of exemplary leadership and dedication to the Institute. Pace heads NIAA’s Emerging Disease Committee.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – High market prices and low input costs continue to make soybeans an attractive crop that will gain acres in 2009, but apparently not as many as originally predicted.

John Anderson, agricultural economist with the Mississippi State University Extension Service, said market watchers have been eager to see soybean acreage predictions. He said the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Prospective Plantings Report released March 31 was greeted “with a lot of anticipation in the marketplace.”