News From 2014

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Dr. Richard M. Hopper, professor with the Mississippi State University College of Veterinary Medicine, has been awarded the El Toro Award for Excellence in Food Animal Medicine at Auburn University’s College of Veterinary Medicine.

Hopper, who teaches in the Department of Pathobiology and Population Medicine and is an MSU Extension Service veterinarian, received the award during Auburn’s 107th veterinary annual conference.

The birds are singing, the flowers are blooming, and yes, the weeds are starting to grow in your fishing pond. Don’t let them get out of hand! Start your weed management program early, before the problem becomes too difficult to treat.

Prevention is the best way to avoid weed problems. Shallow areas where light reaches the pond bottom are ideal for the growth of rooted aquatic weeds. Deepening pond edges so that the water depth quickly reaches 3 feet helps reduce weeds. For safety, make the slope 3:1, or one foot deeper for every three feet farther from shore.

COLLINS – When Jo Lynn Mitchell started an agritourism business to add income to the family farm, she had no idea she would end up proving that people can still farm for a living.

Mitchell fell in love with farming as a way of life after marrying her husband Don, and she wanted to introduce farm life to children and adults. In 2006, she planted pumpkins and invited schools and churches to visit for an educational experience on how crops grow. The children each received a pumpkin to carry home as a reminder of what they learned at the farm.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- One of local government’s oldest and most essential jobs is being recognized for its services during an upcoming week of local, national and international activities.

The 44th annual Municipal Clerks Week will be observed May 5-11. During this week, municipal clerks in many of Mississippi’s cities, towns and villages will take part in activities to increase the public’s awareness of municipal clerks and the vital services they provide for local government and the community.

MISSISSIPPI STATE – Getting and keeping a job often depends on an individual’s ability to use basic computer programs and social media applications.

The Mississippi State University Extension Center for Technology Outreach provides a variety of training workshops on common software programs for word processing, spreadsheets, and graphic design. Staff members also teach classes on using tablets and smartphones, digital cameras and GPS systems.

By Brittnie Burton
MSU Ag Communications

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Learning opportunities for teens do not end when school lets out for the summer in communities across Mississippi.

The Mississippi State University Extension Service is recruiting students in six counties for the inaugural Mississippi Youth Preparedness Initiative, or MyPI.

YAZOO CITY -- Mississippi Women for Agriculture will kick off a new lunch-and-learn program May 2.

The first meeting of the “Farm Women Friday” series will be hosted by the Mississippi State University Extension Service at the Yazoo County Extension office and broadcast to county Extension offices across the state.

By Brittnie Burton
MSU Ag Communications

CLEVELAND -- Horse lovers may think of horses as family, but they should always handle the large animals with caution.

Laura Giaccaglia, Bolivar County coordinator with the Mississippi State University Extension Service, said safety comes first in horse handling.

“Horses are massive animals, and when you are around them, you have to keep your guard up at all times,” Giaccaglia said. “We teach our 4-H members that respect is the foundation for safety for the animal and the people around it.”

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Most centenarians are slowing down and avoiding modern technology, but the Mississippi State University Extension Service is doing neither as it approaches its 100th birthday.

With the chance of any more spring freezes getting lower by the day, the typical home gardener is out looking for plants for when the summer temperatures start to rise. Annual flowering vinca is one that really brightens up our Mississippi summer landscapes.

Annual flowering vinca has attractive foliage and gorgeous flowers. The foliage is a glossy, dark green and has a prominent rib in the middle of the leaf. This coloration makes for a fantastic background to show off its purple, red, pink and white flowers.

JACKSON – Hay producers need warmer temperatures and drier ground to catch up with production this spring.

“Everything is shaping up to be late with all the wet, cool weather we’ve had,” said Charlie Bush, Mississippi State University Extension Service agent in Simpson County. Simpson was one of the counties where some fields flooded after most areas in central Mississippi received between three and 10 inches of rain between April 5 and 7.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Soybeans have been an important commodity in Mississippi for more than 50 years, but recent advances have pushed the crop’s value above $1 billion.

Mississippi soybeans had a value of $267 million in 2006, $1.27 billion in 2012 and $1.17 billion in 2013. Prices have been high for the past several years, but state producers put more effort into management and increased yields to a record average of 45 bushels an acre in 2012 and 2013.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- The Mississippi State University Extension Service is offering white-tailed deer management workshops to give landowners and managers hands-on education on improving deer herds and hunting opportunities.

By Beth Poganski
MSU Extension Service

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mississippi might not have been ranked the healthiest or the wealthiest state in 2013, but if there were a ranking for water resources, Mississippi would be near the top of the list.

Several factors place Mississippi in the very fortunate situation of having what much of the world does not: water.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- The Mississippi State University Extension Service is tuning up its sewing machines as the requests for sewing classes stack up.

“Everything old is new again,” said Sylvia Clark, family and consumer sciences Extension associate. “There is a renewed interest in sewing, in making clothes and items for the home that reflect a personal sense of style and save money.”

Most schools in Mississippi, like those in many other states, no longer offer sewing classes.

JACKSON – Commercial fruit and vegetable growers can learn to produce strawberries for local markets during a one-time short course offered May 13 and 14 in Choctaw.

Experts from the Mississippi State University Extension Service, the Research and Extension Division of the University of Arkansas, and the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce will present information about crop production and marketing.

Strawberry expert Barclay Poling of North Carolina State University and strawberry grower Mel Ellis of Mayhew Tomato Farm in Columbus are featured speakers.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- The Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station recently honored several members of the Mississippi State University faculty, staff and student body for outstanding research, service and facility maintenance.

Fei Yu, a MAFES scientists and assistant professor in the MSU Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, received the 2014 Excellence in Research Award sponsored by Mississippi Land Bank. Yu also received the MAFES Grantsmanship Award for amassing more than $4.5 million in grants.

I’m ready for warm weather. I’ve had it with the cold winter that seemed much longer than it actually was. Bring on the summer garden.

In my opinion, there are a couple of plants that seem to just scream “SUMMER.” Zinnia is one of them.

One zinnia that is forgotten in some gardens is the family of Zinnia elegans, the cutting zinnia. Benary’s Giant zinnia is a must-have for any home gardener who wants long-lasting cut flowers all summer.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Eliminating ramshorn snails is a proven method of controlling a major catfish parasite, but producers must be constantly vigilant to keep a small problem from exploding into big trouble.

Digenetic trematodes, which are spread by ramshorn snails, can cause costly problems in Mississippi catfish ponds, including slow fish growth, susceptibility to diseases and fingerling death. This parasite is showing signs of reemerging as a significant problem, and it has spread from the Delta to east Mississippi ponds.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Markets for Mississippi’s sawtimber and pulpwood are bouncing back from the economic recession, but the industry is not improving across the board.

“Slowly but surely, markets for sawtimber are beginning to grow again after the sharp declines seen after the collapse of the U.S. housing market and the ensuing recession,” said James Henderson, associate Extension professor of forestry at Mississippi State University. “But the closing of the International Paper mill in Courtland, Ala. will have an impact on north Mississippi’s pulpwood markets.”