News

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- A Health and Safety Summit on March 23 and 24 in Jackson will address rural and occupational health concerns for much of Mississippi.

Summit organizers want to create awareness, identify issues and develop a plan to improve the safety and health environment of rural Mississippians, especially in the Delta region. The meeting will begin at 10 a.m. on the first day with remarks from Gov. Haley Barbour.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Gardeners looking for a break from the long, wet winter may want to head down to the 2004 Mississippi Garden and Patio Show March 13 and 14 in Jackson.

The show is a result of the combined efforts of the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce, the Mississippi Nursery and Landscape Association and Mississippi State University, and officially kicks off the gardening season.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Since last summer, drivers along Highway 82 near the Mississippi State University campus have been inquiring about the school's cemetery.

The rows of white, round-topped "tombstones" visible from the highway adjacent to MSU's North Farm don't mark final resting places. They are, instead, part of a turf grass research project.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

There is a new, bold gardener out there stirring up excitement. What I like about the bold gardener's style is that it uses plant selections or combinations in atypical ways. The result is that we're pushed outside our comfort zone -- we are challenged.

One instance of this bold style involves plants thought of as only for the arid west or perhaps Mexico. These plants typically have sword-like leaves and even prickles.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

My imagination runs wild when I think about a white coneflower I saw last summer. I can picture a man saying, "Honey, I got a new white coneflower and I am going to name it after you -- Kim's Mophead."

I suppose it didn't happen that way, but it sure would be fun to think so. If so, that was probably the last flower he named -- right after Kim's Knee High, a more traditional but shorter purple coneflower.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Rotational grazing may sound like a way to get a cow dizzy, but this method of forage management gives producers the highest efficiency from their pastures.

Stan Pace, agronomic crops agent in Wiggins with the Mississippi State University Extension Service, said using rotational grazing can increase efficiency up to 75 percent over conventional grazing's 30 percent to 35 percent efficiency.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Instead of the typical veterinary internship, one Mississippi State University student joined a human influenza response team during the severe 2003-04 flu season.

Dr. Brittany Baughman originally planned to work with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention studying diseases that are zoonotic, or pass between humans and animals. But when the unusually severe flu season hit, that branch of the CDC needed extra help with an in-depth study of influenza deaths in children.

By Tricia Hopper

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Sandwiched between high-calorie holidays and swimsuit weather, March offers the perfect time of the year for people to consider healthier nutrition.

March is National Nutrition Month, and this year's campaign, "Eat Smart, Stay Healthy," focuses on the importance of healthy eating choices and physical activity.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

This year it looks like the snow bush will again be one of the hottest plants at the garden and patio shows, but you had shop early if you want one or more.

Some may ask, "What in the world is a snow bush? Isn't the winter long, cold and wet enough without mentioning snow?"

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- An anniversary celebration Feb. 27 will mark 30 years of veterinary education, service and research at Mississippi State University's College of Veterinary Medicine.

While the college has grown considerably since its development and construction began in 1974, MSU-CVM Dean Dr. John U. Thomson said the mission remains constant.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mississippi will soon host an intensive, one-of-a-kind greenhouse tomato workshop with national and international appeal.

The short course on March 9 and 10 in Jackson will be the state's 14th annual gathering exclusively dedicated to helping producers of greenhouse tomatoes. Mississippi is home to 135 growers who combine to produce a $6.5 million greenhouse tomato crop annually. In 2003, the short course attracted participants from 24 states and four countries.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mississippi State University's College of Veterinary Medicine has been recognized for its efforts in achieving performance excellence.

The veterinary college earned the Quality Commitment Award, one of four awards given by the Mississippi Quality Awards program. MSU-CVM received the Quality Alignment Award last year.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

Victoria Blue, a 1998 Mississippi Medallion award winner, has always been one of my favorite varieties of Salvia farinacea, or mealy-cup sage, but there are certainly some other selections worthy of a prime spot in the landscape.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- The worst may not be over for cattle producers despite mid-January market rebounds from the Dec. 23 news of the nation's first case of mad cow disease.

After the discovery of one cow in Washington state with bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or mad cow disease, virtually all countries stopped accepting beef from the United States. Although domestic consumption changed very little, the loss of almost 10 percent of the beef market in exports is contributing to a build-up of supplies.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

If you are ready for some new garden appeal, look no further than two of this year's All-America Selections winners: Fresh Look Red and Fresh Look Yellow celosia.

Fresh Look Red celosia performs like a fresh floral arrangement all summer and for that reason is an All-America Selections Gold Medal Winner.

Thriving in the summer heat and humidity with drought or rainy conditions, Fresh Look Red decorates a garden or patio container with rosy red plumes.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- When AgrAbility fitted a step onto Donald Vowell's all-terrain vehicle, he joined the group of about 60 Mississippians served by this program for people with a disability who live or work on farms.

Vowell, an Ackerman native, was 20 when he suffered a spinal cord injury in a car wreck. He was paralyzed from the chin down, but five months of spinal cord rehabilitation helped him learn to walk again.

"Now I can walk with the aid of a cane -- not real good, not real far, not real fast -- but I can do it," Vowell said.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Most consumers never consider what happens to animal by-products that accumulate as farmers work to deliver safe, affordable food to their tables. But a recent meeting offered a platform for agricultural stakeholders to review efforts and consider future needs.

By Norman Winter
MSU Horticulturist
Central Mississippi Research & Extension Center

If silver foliage is the first thing you think of at the mention to the word artemisia, you haven't seen Oriental Limelight. This introduction by Proven Winners has really captured the imagination of landscape designers everywhere. It is also an incredible plant for mixed baskets and containers.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mad cow disease will be one of the health concerns dairy producers will discuss during an in-depth seminar on herd diseases Feb. 19 in Tylertown.

In addition to bovine spongiform encephalopathy (mad cow disease), producers will learn about Johne's disease, the U.S. Animal Identification Program, biosecurity concerns and other issues related to dairy herd health.

MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Full accreditation of the Mississippi Veterinary Research and Diagnostic Laboratory System confirms the state's animals receive the level of care they deserve.

In December, the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians granted full accreditation to the four-laboratory system that includes labs in Jackson, Pearl, Starkville and Stoneville. The AAVLD accreditation committee conducted on-site inspections of the laboratories in September.