(Distributed 11/30/12) Are you one of the many Americans who face the holiday season with some fear of gaining weight? The good news is that although many people gain weight from Thanksgiving through New Year's Day, research suggests that the gain will probably be only one pound, not five, says LSU AgCenter nutritionist Beth Reames.

(Distributed 11/30/12) The LSU AgCenter announces its call for entries for the 2014 Get It Growing Lawn and Garden Calendar. Louisiana photographers will have an opportunity to submit their best photos of beautiful Louisiana flowers, plants, lawns and gardens.

(Distributed 11/30/12) This is a great time to add new trees to our landscapes. Oak trees are very popular in Louisiana landscapes, and we are familiar with the popular Southern live oak. Deciduous oaks – those that lose foliage in winter – common in Louisiana are water oak, shumard oak, southern red oak and willow oak. The one, however, with the best potential for landscape use is the nuttall oak.

(Distributed 11/26/12) BATON ROUGE, La. – Two of the 10 Louisiana participants in the national 4 H Poultry and Egg Conference recently (Nov. 14 15) won first and second place in cooking competition.

(Distributed 11/26/12) ABBEVILLE, La. – A seafood promotion and marketing project aimed at developing direct sales from fishermen to customers is being expanded along the Louisiana Gulf Coast.

(Distributed 11/20/12) BATON ROUGE, La. – Twenty winners of this year’s Louisiana 4-H Educational Awards Trip were honored at an awards luncheon at The Club at Union Square, formerly the LSU Faculty Club, on Nov. 20.

(Distributed 11/21/12) BATON ROUGE, La. – The holidays mean an increase in mail orders for boxed cheese at the LSU AgCenter Dairy Store. The boxes contain two pounds of cheese that sell for $11.50 a box, plus tax and shipping charges.

(Distributed 11/20/12) BATON ROUGE, La. – Nominations for the 2013 Louisiana Farmer of the Year award are being accepted now through Jan. 4. Application forms can be obtained at any LSU AgCenter parish extension office or online at www.LSUAgCenter.com/farmeroftheyear.

(Distributed 11/21/12) Japanese maples have the potential to be one of the most outstanding small trees for specimen plantings and focal-point use in residential landscapes in the Southeast.

(Distributed 11/16/12) November is prime time for cool-season bedding plants, and dianthus have been among the plants in this group gaining considerable popularity the past 10 years. Pansies have long been the most popular cool-season bedding plant, but many new dianthus varieties are making this great, under-used cool-season flower better known to home gardeners.

(Distributed 11/16/12) Thanksgiving week is the time when many people begin purchasing plants for the holiday season, and many poinsettias are available in stores and garden centers now, according to LSU AgCenter horticulturist Allen Owings.

(Distributed 11/16/12) BATON ROUGE, La. – In casseroles and pies, sweet potatoes will share space with the turkey on Thanksgiving. Louisiana farmers harvested a good crop of this Thanksgiving mainstay. LSU AgCenter sweet potato specialist Tara Smith said despite some concerns late in the growing season, farmers brought in a good crop.

(Distributed 11/14/12) BATON ROUGE, La. – Louisiana farmers produced a record soybean crop this year, yielding 44 bushels on 1.11 million acres, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture statistics. The previous high was 43 bushels in 2007.

(Distributed 11/14/12) BATON ROUGE, La. – TransGenRx Inc. (tgrxinc.com), a biopharmaceutical manufacturing company based here, recently received a substantial Louisiana R&D Tax Credit award.

(Distributed 11/14/12) BATON ROUGE, La. – The holidays are a perfect time to enjoy Louisiana sweet potatoes or yams, as they have come to be known. Louisiana yams are bred to have a soft, moist flesh and to be exceptionally sweet and flavorful.

(Distributed 11/14/12) BATON ROUGE, La. – Pies are traditionally served at holiday feasts. But mishandling them can lead to problems, according to LSU AgCenter nutritionist Beth Reames.

(Distributed 11/14/12) BATON ROUGE, La. – For many Americans, Thanksgiving wouldn’t be complete without turkey. To make sure you have enough turkey for the feast and for leftovers too, purchase at least one pound of uncooked turkey per person, says LSU AgCenter nutritionist Beth Reames.

(Distributed 11/14/12) BATON ROUGE, La. – Brining turkey for holiday meals is becoming more popular. The salt used in brining dissolves protein in the muscle, and the salt and protein reduce moisture loss during cooking, according to LSU AgCenter nutritionist Beth Reames. This makes meat juicy and tender.

(Distributed 11/14/12) BATON ROUGE, La. – Fried turkey is not as unhealthful as it sounds – if you don't eat the skin of the bird, according to LSU AgCenter nutritionist Beth Reames. In fact, experts recommend not eating the skin no matter how a turkey is prepared.

(Distributed 11/13/12) BATON ROUGE, La. – Louisiana cooks shopping for Thanksgiving will find the costs of traditional dinner items up this year. The 2012 Thanksgiving market basket will average $44.35 for 10 people, according to an LSU AgCenter survey.

(Distributed 11/13/12) BATON ROUGE, La. – Gregg Henderson, the Paul K. Adams Professor of Urban Entomology at the LSU AgCenter, was named the recipient of the 2012 Recognition Award in Urban Entomology from the Entomological Foundation.

(Distributed 11/09/12) BATON ROUGE, La. – An apparent increase in cases of hemorrhagic disease among deer in the Florida parishes of Louisiana has caused concern among hunters and wildlife experts. But that doesn’t mean the disease is on the rise, according to an entomologist with the LSU AgCenter.

(Distributed 11/09/12) HAMMOND, La. – You can include in your landscape many trees and shrubs that will provide significant color in fall and winter year after year.

(Distributed 11/06/12) BATON ROUGE, La. – Twelve LSU AgCenter extension agents received awards from the National Association of Extension 4-H Agents at the organization’s Oct. 21-25 annual meeting in Orlando, Fla.

(Distributed 11/02/12) HAMMOND, La. – A poor horticulture practice in Louisiana and across the South involves one of our most beloved landscape trees. Each year, crape myrtles are pruned improperly. One of the ten commandments of gardening should be “thou shalt not top crape myrtles.”