News

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

Imagine this: It's late winter, you love growing flowers, your child is getting married this summer and the costs from required deposits are already mounting. As financial worry awakens you during the night, those 2 a.m. feedings of long ago seem like a pleasant dream.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- The decision to use homegrown flowers may cut wedding costs, but at what price?

Julie Reeves of Starkville wanted to help with her son's May 1999 wedding.

“We wanted so many flowers that we knew we couldn't afford to pay a florist for all of them. It seemed like the effort would be worth it,” she said. “There really wasn't much cost involved, just a lot of effort.”

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Whether as guests or part of the wedding party, children add an element of uncertainty that may or may not be welcome at these ceremonies.

Louise Davis, child and family development specialist with the Mississippi State University Extension Service, said a simple rule of thumb is to bring children to weddings if they are invited and are 5 years or older.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- With almost half of all marriages today being remarriages, a bride and a groom often go home to a newly created family rather than set out to start their own.

Joe Wilmoth, assistant professor of human development and family studies in Mississippi State University's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, said stepfamilies face incredibly diverse challenges.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- When couples cannot decide between traditional wedding locations, the South offers some ideal spots away -- but not far -- from home.

Mississippi couples do not have to travel to Hawaii or the Bahamas to find romantic settings. Beaches, resorts and antebellum homes are a few of the sites gaining popularity in what is known as destination weddings.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- An upcoming interactive video short course will provide rose enthusiasts with tips for growing and enjoying healthy plants.

The five-week course will meet from 6:30 p.m. until 8:30 p.m. on Tuesdays from March 20 until April 17. The American Rose Society Gulf District and Mississippi State University’s Extension Service in cooperation with the Mississippi Master Gardener Association are sponsoring the course.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- A 20-county effort to improve the health of Mississippians is spreading across the state with all programs set to be under way by the end of February.

Organizers for the 12-week Mississippi in Motion project cite the state’s poor health report card as the motivation for this potentially life-changing program.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mississippi's mostly mild climate can show an ugly side unexpectedly, and ice storms are an occasional nasty part of life in the state.

The accumulation of ice knocks down power lines and trees, cutting off the electricity to many homes and communities and making driving dangerous. For others, the intense cold can be deadly, especially when electricity is needed to keep a house warm.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Several veterinary students at Mississippi State University have taken advantage of opportunities to learn about foreign animal diseases that could threaten the nation's domestic animals.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

The Profusion zinnias will continue to be hot in 2007. I had the oddest feeling when I visited Sakata Seed in California last April. We were in the middle of our 2006 Mississippi Medallion program promoting the truly outstanding Profusion Fire and Profusion Apricot zinnias.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

Something magical happens after Jan. 1. There is a spirit of optimism among gardeners. We know winter is still here, but spring is coming. As weather permits, it is time to get the garden ready and make plans for this year's plantings.

There are many new plants to try in 2007. Many of them have names we have never heard and which cannot be found in any reference book.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Teachers, 4-H agents, volunteers and other group leaders are among those who are invited to take part in a two-day facilitator training for people interested in conservation activities.

Mississippi State University’s Department of Wildlife and Fisheries is sponsoring the Leopold Education Project training Feb. 8-9 at the Noxubee National Wildlife Refuge.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- An army of volunteers is largely responsible for the success of 4-H, and once a year, this group has the chance to meet to renew their enthusiasm and better equip themselves for the task of working with youth.

4-H volunteer adult leaders from across the state are gathering March 2-4 at the Bost Extension Center at Mississippi State University for the state’s annual 4-H Volunteer Leaders’ Conference. This year’s theme is “4-H Volunteers Gearing Up for the Race.” The deadline for registration is Feb. 1.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mississippi’s oldest regional farm show will salute the state’s $6 billion agricultural industry during the Jan. 16-17 event in Cleveland.

Farmers and agricultural consultants across the region will converge on the Bolivar County Exposition Center, located on Highway 61 North, for the 34th annual Delta Ag Expo.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- A member of the Mississippi State University Plant and Soil Science Department has been named a Fellow of the Crop Science Society of America.

Research professor K. Raja Reddy received the honor at the society’s 2006 annual meeting in November. The Fellow designation is the highest honor the 4,500-member organization confers on its members. Reddy was one of just 10 selected for the honor in 2006. 

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

Rainbow Knock Out is a name that may cause you to get exited about the 2007 All-American Rose Selections. William Radler, the same breeder who brought us our Mississippi Medallion award-winning Knock Out, bred Rainbow Knock Out.

The All-American Rose Selections committee introduced three winners for 2007: Rainbow Knock Out, Moondance and Strike It Rich.

Rainbow Knock Out

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Rose lovers will find a lot to like in a new garden on the Mississippi State University campus.

Researchers began working with landscape roses at MSU in 1982, and established a rose garden near the Enology Lab on the North Farm in 1985. In the mid-1990s, the garden moved to the teaching and research arboretum on the South Farm.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

Those who have grown Six Hills Giant catmint will want to make room for Walker's Low catmint, the 2007 Perennial Plant of the Year. Introduced in 1988 in Europe, Walker's Low has become increasingly popular with each passing year.

I am impressed with the variety of plants chosen by the Perennial Plant Association. Some of my favorites have been Becky Shasta daisy, Firewitch dianthus, Butterfly Blue scabiosa and Sunny Border Blue veronica.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

The deodar cedar is one of my favorite trees in larger landscapes. Oddly enough, its country of origin is seen daily in the headlines. Can you guess? It's from Afghanistan and the Himalayas.

To me it's from Lucedale. Some of our great woody ornamental producers grow this tree.  Most of you probably think of me as a tropical nerd or flower nut of some kind, but I'll readily admit that I may wake up a conifer freak some morning.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- A multidisciplinary effort at Mississippi State University to create an agricultural genomic database has resulted in a million dollar grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The funding will support ongoing efforts to enlarge AgBase, an online database developed by College of Veterinary Medicine researcher Dr. Shane Burgess and College of Engineering researcher Susan Bridges. Burgess and Bridges are also co-directors of the Institute for Digital Biology at MSU.