Feature Story from 2016

VERONA, Miss. -- More than 230 commodity producers in northeast Mississippi shared their research and outreach needs with Mississippi State University Extension Service specialists, researchers and administrators during the annual Producer Advisory Council meeting Feb. 18.

The meeting is held each year on the third Thursday in February at the Lee County Agricenter and the MSU North Mississippi Research and Extension Center in Verona. Producers represented 13 commodity groups across 27 counties.

POPLARVILLE, Miss. -- A free workshop for water well owners originally scheduled for Feb. 23 has been rescheduled for Feb. 29 because of predicted bad weather.

South Mississippi homeowners in small communities and rural areas without public water supplies can learn how to better manage, operate and protect their private wells during a program in Pearl River County.

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Mississippi State University will host four conservation camps in June to promote interest in careers and activities in the outdoors.

The camps are offered by the MSU Extension Service and the MSU Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Aquaculture.

PORT GIBSON, Miss. -- Mississippi farmers can learn about the Farm to School Program during an upcoming field day in Claiborne County.

The Alliance for Sustainable Agricultural Production will hold its first on-farm field day of the year at the Claiborne County Career and Technical Center in Port Gibson on March 18.

BILOXI, Miss. -- Food safety professionals can earn the necessary certification to meet new provisions in the Food Safety Modernization Act next month during a three-day course on the Gulf Coast.

The Mississippi State University Extension Service is hosting a Food Safety Preventative Controls Alliance course March 22-24 in collaboration with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Mississippi growers are relying on seed technologists to address issues related to their crops before the 2016 season begins.

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- The foundation of a healthy marriage rests on the solid ground of communication.

Karen Benson, an agent of the Mississippi State University Extension Service in Neshoba County who conducts family life programs, said couples are able to grow closer emotionally when they open up about their hopes and needs.

“Conflict is inevitable, but marriage does not have to be a struggle,” she said. “We learn to negotiate and learn more about ourselves when we work out solutions to conflicts.”

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- A Mississippi State University student team’s business venture may be one solution to nutritional deficiencies the state’s schoolchildren face.

The team of students in MSU Department of Food Science, Nutrition and Health Promotion proposed a business to produce a cost-effective, sweet-potato-based powder they have named “Panacea.”

Team members include junior Morgan Von Staden of Olive Branch, Mississippi; graduate student Liz Ivey of Cumming, Georgia; and graduate student Hector Portillo of Sarasota, Florida.

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- A person with extensive knowledge of bugs can almost tell the date by paying careful attention to what is going on in the insect world.

Right now, soon-to-emerge tomato fruitworms tell observers spring is around the corner. Gardeners frequently encounter pupas of various caterpillars when digging in the garden or flower bed. Identifying these seasonal insects can be difficult.

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- 4-H’ers in three Mississippi counties now have extra tools to learn science, technology, engineering and math concepts thanks to a contribution from a worldwide leader in wireless technology.

The Verizon Foundation donated $14,000 to the Mississippi State University Extension Service for three county agents to buy educational equipment for the youngest 4-H members in the areas they serve.

BILOXI, Miss. -- Gulf Coast landowners who restore natural shorelines on their property can help reduce erosion, support healthy coastal ecosystems and boost local economies.

Scientists from Mississippi State University, the University of South Alabama, Dauphin Island Sea Lab, the University of Connecticut, The Nature Conservancy and the Grand Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve teamed up to find the most economical and effective method of salt marsh restoration for small-scale projects.

MADISON, Miss. -- Jaclyn Anderson admits her strong suit is not math or science, but that did not stop her from providing a robotics class for children at the Rebecca Baine Rigby Library in Madison.

“I really wanted to have this program for the kids,” said Anderson, youth services director with the Madison County Library System. “We had done a very basic class two summers ago, but it wasn’t a hands-on class because we didn’t have any robots or computers or computer software. We just showed them how to build a circuit.”

As I walked around my landscape this weekend, I was really impressed with how my three winter staples -- pansies, violas and Telstar dianthuses -- are enjoying the lengthening days and a little bit of warmer weather.

As I walked around my landscape this weekend, I was really impressed with how my three winter staples -- pansies, violas and Telstar dianthuses -- are enjoying the lengthening days and a little bit of warmer weather.

They are blooming like crazy, almost in response to what I’ve been thinking: It’s time to start planning and planting the warm-season annuals.

JACKSON, Miss. -- Teachers, students and community members are invited to learn about biological diversity and take part in naturalist activities at BioBlitz events in Jackson and Tupelo.

Participants will partner with biologists to track down and identify as many local trees, plants, insects, amphibians, reptiles, mammals and birds as possible. Individuals can help scientists by recording species they see on the free app, iNaturalist.

BILOXI, Miss. -- Food safety professionals can earn the necessary certification to meet new provisions in the Food Safety Modernization Act next month during a three-day course on the Gulf Coast.

The Mississippi State University Extension Service is hosting a Food Safety Preventative Controls Alliance course March 22-24 in collaboration with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Aspirin can knock out minor aches and pains, but what if it also could play a role in cancer prevention?

That is the question a group of veterinarians at Mississippi State University are trying to answer. Drs. Kari Lunsford and Camilo Bulla are two members of the team who have spent about five years trying to understand the link between blood platelets and the spread of certain types of cancer. Their research focuses on canine cancer patients at the MSU Animal Health Center.

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Mississippi State University has joined a new initiative dedicated to helping farmers better control, manage and maximize the value of the data they collect every day in their fields.

The Agricultural Data Coalition (ADC) is the result of years of planning and coordination by AGCO, the American Farm Bureau Federation, Auburn University, CNH Industrial, Crop IMS, The Ohio State University, Mississippi State University, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Raven Industries and Topcon Positioning Group.

PICAYUNE, Miss. -- The Mississippi State University Crosby Arboretum recently received the Garden Excellence Award from the American Public Gardens Association.

The prestigious award is presented to one public garden each year based on its commitment to supporting and demonstrating best horticultural practices. Past recipients of the award include the Ladybird Johnson Wildflower Center, Longwood Gardens, Chicago Botanic Garden and Missouri Botanical Garden.

WAYNESBORO, Miss. -- Almost 10 years after graduating from college with the plan of opening her own child care center, LaTonya Hill’s dream will come true.

Hill’s new center on Hudson Lane will serve 35 children in toddler and pre-K classrooms.

HERNANDO, Miss. -- Food safety training courses on March 30 will help make participating in certified farmers markets a little easier for processed food vendors, cottage food operators, and fruit and vegetable producers.

General Food Safety Training and Acidified Canned Foods Training will teach vendors about specific requirements and procedures for selling their products at certified farmers markets in Mississippi. The Mississippi State University Extension Service will host the seminars at the Hernando Gale Center.