Continuing the tropical theme for ornamental plants of the week in August is cassava, also called tapioca plant.

(Distributed 08/02/13) POLLOCK, La. – Central Louisiana residents will soon have access to the LSU AgCenter’s state-of-the-art computer training center that was dedicated on Aug. 1 at the Grant Walker 4-H Educational Center.

(Distributed 08/09/13) BATON ROUGE, La. – LSU AgCenter entomologists have been preparing for the tawny crazy ant population to increase in Louisiana for a while – the wait is over for residents in north Baton Rouge.

(Video News 08/26/13) The roar of a sugar mill won’t be heard until fall, but you could hear sounds of processing at a small mill that uses the same technology to make biofuels instead of sugar. LSU AgCenter correspondent Tobie Blanchard has this story. (Runtime: 2:02)

(Distributed 08/30/13) HAMMOND, La. – Buddleias, known by most home gardeners as butterfly bush, are becoming an increasingly popular plant in the home landscape.

(Distributed 08/29/13) BATON ROUGE, La. – One hundred elementary schools across Louisiana are taking steps to help their students eat better and move more during this school year. These schools are participating in Smart Bodies, a program of the LSU AgCenter and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana Foundation.

(Audio 09/02/13) Trees are the most valuable part of a landscape. The roots of trees are very shallow and can be easily damaged by construction near the tree. It's important to protect the roots of the tree to keep it healthy. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Audio 09/02/13) Pecan trees have brittle wood, so they should never be planted close to homes or structures. When branches get heavy with pecans, they may break off. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Audio 09/02/13) Rainy weather in late summer can encourage the growth of fungi in your lawn. Those fungi can send up mushrooms. There are no fungicides that can control mushrooms, but you can pick them and throw them out if you are concerned about them. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Audio 09/02/13) Gardeners can grow onions during winter. Bunching onions are types of onions that don't make a bulb. They split and grow in clumps. This is a great time to grow them. They can he harvested throughout winter. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Audio 09/02/13) Don't miss out on fall vegetables. It is not too late to plant transplants of tomatoes and peppers. In September you can also start planting cool-season vegetables. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Distributed 08/28/13) BATON ROUGE, La. – It is not unusual for healthy habits to take a back seat to summer activities. Youngsters may stay up later and sleep in more. But with schools back in session, LSU AgCenter nutritionist Denise Holston-West says parents should reestablish consistent patterns for eating breakfast, family meals and bedtime.

(Distributed 08/28/13) CROWLEY, La. – Harvest of the south Louisiana rice crop is winding down, and favorable reports are the rule. “It’s been a good crop,” said Steve Linscombe, director of the LSU AgCenter Rice Research Station. “Quality-wise, it’s outstanding.”

(Distributed 08/28/13) BATON ROUGE, La. – Two faculty members in the LSU AgCenter Department of Food Science have been named Fellows of the Institute of Food Technologists.

(Distributed 08/28/13) MANGHAM, La. – A beef and forage field day will be held at Goldmine Plantation in Mangham from 9:30 a.m. to noon on Thurs., Sept. 19.

(Distributed 08/26/13) OPELOUSAS, La. – The Acadiana Beef Cattle Producers field day has been set for Oct. 3 at Dominique’s Stockyard.

(Distributed 08/26/13) HOMER, La. – A Master Farmer field day for poultry producers will be held Sept. 18 at the LSU AgCenter Hill Farm Research Station.

(Distributed 08/26/13) PORT ALLEN, La. – A virus that has crippled the cricket industry in Europe keeps West Baton Rouge Parish breeder and grower David Fluker alert, but optimistic.

(Distributed 08/26/13) CADE, La. – Cattle prices should stay at the current level – or even increase – because of the expected decrease in beef production, an LSU AgCenter beef economist told cattle farmers on Aug. 21.

(Distributed 08/23/13) CHASE, La. – Mavis Finger, the new LSU AgCenter sweet potato specialist, always knew she wanted a career in making things grow.

(Distributed 08/23/13) CROWLEY, La. – Giant salvinia in southwest Louisiana should be under control in a few years. In the meantime landowners can combat the invasive aquatic weed with herbicides, according to an LSU AgCenter weed specialist.

(Distributed 08/23/14) Princess flower (tibouchina) includes several species.

(Distributed 08/23/13) HAMMOND, La. – Late summer is the time to begin preparations for spectacular fall blooms on your roses. Roses need disease management and proper fertilization in August through early September for best fall performance.

(Distributed 08/16/13) HAMMOND, La. – Gulf Coast muhly – or pink muhly grass (known botanically as Muhlenbergia capillaris) – is one of the most stunning grasses in the fall landscape in Louisiana. This coastal native ornamental grass has received a considerable amount of attention the past few years.

(Video 08/26/13) Now is the time to get some of your fall vegetables planted. On this edition of Get It Growing, LSU AgCenter horticulturist Dan Gill explains which plants to grow and what to look for when selecting vegetable transplants. (Runtime: 1:28)

(Audio News 08/20/13) At the Audubon Sugar Institute, a scaled-down version of a sugar mill processes sweet sorghum to make biofuels and specialty chemicals. Ben Legendre, Audubon Institute director, says the purpose of the mill is to extract juice from the crop. (Runtime: 1:55)

(Video News 8/20/13) A cold spring delayed development of Louisiana rice crop. Now summer storms are pushing back the harvest. LSU AgCenter correspondent Tobie Blanchard has this story. (Runtime: 1:49)

(Audio 08/26/13) Louisiana gardeners can plant many types of vegetable transplants this time of year. These plants are kept in shady conditions and are well-watered at the nursery, so they will be need to be toughened up a bit before planting them into your garden. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Audio 08/26/13) By late summer, cannas and gingers have been blooming nicely. Remember, each stalk only blooms once. After the blooms fade, you can prune back the shoots. This makes room for fresh, new stalks to grow. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Audio 08/26/13) This time of the year you may notice a fine, silvery webbing on the bark of a tree. This webbing is not harmful. It's created by bark lice that feed on organic debris on the crevices of the tree. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Audio 08/26/13) The heat could cause roses to look poorly in late summer. The good news is they'll bloom again in the fall. To get them ready for fall blooming, cut them back and fertilize them. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Audio 08/26/13) Louisiana summers can be stressful on plants. Late August is a good time to evaluate your plants and see if they are able to withstand the heat. Make a note of which ones work to plant again next year. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Distributed 08/16/13) Golden dewdrop, pigeon berry and sky flower are common names for durantas.

(Audio 08/16/13) Storms that blew through Acadiana kept farmers out of their rice fields. Workers at Randy Thibodeaux’s family farm were using the break from harvest to move rice out of bins for shipping. Thibodeaux and his brothers farm 4,300 acres of rice. After such a cold spring, he wasn’t sure what kind of crop he would have.

(Audio 08/19/13) Palms can be grown all over the state of Louisiana. They are easy to grow, but they can use a little care. When fertilizing palms, make sure to use a fertilizer labeled for palms. Cutting off old fronds can keep them attractive. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Audio 08/19/13) Homeowners fertilize lawns to give the grass more vigor and to give it a deep green color. Late summer is a good time to fertilize lawns. If you want to fertilize, do it by the end of August. Fertilizing later can make the lawn susceptible to cold damage in winter. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Audio 08/19/13) Plants can experience heat stress in August. This makes it a bad time to plant hardy trees or shrubs. If you are looking to plant something now, consider tropical plants. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Distributed 08/14/13) BATON ROUGE, La. – Man-made modifications in the Mississippi River Valley – levees, cut-offs and dams – have all caused changes in the ecology of the Atchafalaya Basin and similar areas, Wes Cochran, a graduate student in the School of Renewable Natural Resources, told a conference audience recently.

(Audio 08/19/13) The wishbone flower, also known as torenia, is a summer annual. It comes in lots of colors and likes partial shade. It also tolerates the heat. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Audio 08/19/13) Grass clippings can be beneficial to your lawn. But to do this right, you need to mow frequently with a regular mower or use a mulching mower. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Distributed 08/09/13) POLLOCK, La. – 4-H’ers at Camp Grant Walker learned about outdoor skills and science on Aug. 5-9 with a program aimed at getting seventh- and eighth-graders interested in science and the outdoors.

(Audio News 08/09/13) A population of insects can build up on crops as summer drags on. LSU AgCenter entomologist Jeff Davis said the redbanded stink bug is the most destructive pest on soybeans. (Runtime: 1:10)

(Video News 08/09/13) Harvest season has started in Louisiana. Crops such as rice, soybeans, sugarcane and cotton all get plucked from the fields in late summer and fall. Corn is one of the first crops to get harvested. LSU AgCenter correspondent Tobie Blanchard has the story. (Runtime: 1:25)

(Distributed 08/09/13) HAMMOND, La. – Evaluations of landscape plants at the LSU AgCenter Hammond Research Station include a shade garden area where varieties of new ornamental plants or improved varieties of older ornamental plants are evaluated under partially shaded to shaded conditions.

(Audio 08/12/13) Plants in containers can eventually outgrow their pots. You may notice surface roots or roots growing out of the drainage holes. These are signs the plants need to be repotted into a larger container. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Distributed 08/09/13) BATON ROUGE, La. – As the “dog days” of summer drag slowly into mid-August and beyond, cotton growers need to monitor leaf spot disease in their crop, said LSU AgCenter plant pathologist Trey Price.

(Distributed 08/09/13) ALEXANDRIA, La. – Louisiana grain farmers appear to be holding off the invasion of herbicide-resistant weeds, with only pockets of resistance in the state, according to Daniel Stephenson, LSU AgCenter weed scientist at the Dean Lee Research Station.

(Distributed 08/08/13) BATON ROUGE, La. – Louisiana corn farmers learned a tough lesson in 1998 when aflatoxin showed up in amounts that caused significant problems.

(Audio 08/12/13) Louisiana is in the migration path of the wonderful monarch butterfly. If you want to attract monarchs to your garden, plant milkweed. Monarchs lay their eggs on the foliage of milkweed. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Audio News 08/08/13) Healthy habits often take a back seat to summer activities. But with schools starting back up, LSU AgCenter nutritionist Denise Holston-West says parents should reestablish consistent patterns for eating breakfast, family meals and bedtime. (Runtime: 1:20 seconds)

(Distributed 08/08/13) HAMMOND, La. – The Master Gardeners of Tangipahoa Parish continues to have steady growth since its inception more than 15 years ago, according to LSU AgCenter county agent Sandra Benjamin.

(Audio 08/12/13) Louisiana iris is a wonderful plant to have in the landscape. It can survive along ponds and in shallow water or do well in typical flower beds. August and September are good times to divide or transplant iris. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Audio 08/12/13) If you are looking for gardening projects in the shade - work with ferns. Ferns will get brown foliage mixed in with the green. This is a good time to prune out brown fronds. You can also mulch and fertilize ferns in August. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Audio 08/12/13) Pears ripen best off of the tree. Pears can be harvested when they began to show color. These pears will soften when wrapped in newspaper and kept in a cardboard box for about two weeks. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Distributed 08/07/13) BATON ROUGE, La. – LSU AgCenter researchers are conducting a number of important grain sorghum research projects to help maximize cost-effective returns for farmers.

(Distributed 08/07/13) CROWLEY, La. – A burgeoning interest in growing soybeans in southwest Louisiana has led LSU AgCenter agronomist Dustin Harrell to start a project this year to find out the best planting window for soybeans in southwest Louisiana.

(Distributed 08/06/13) ALEXANDRIA, La. – Under a baking sun, Louisiana’s corn crop is drying down and ready for harvest. On the stalks are large ears of corn. LSU AgCenter corn specialist Ronnie Levy said this signals the potential for another bumper crop.

(Distributed 08/06/13) BATON ROUGE, La. –The Louisiana 4-H forestry team placed fourth out of 13 state teams that competed in the 34th national 4-H forestry invitational held July 21-25 at West Virginia University Jackson’s Mill State 4-H Camp and Conference Center near Weston, W.Va.

(Distributed 08/06/13) ALEXANDRIA, La. – The threecornered alfalfa hopper is in all Louisiana soybean fields. But how much of a threat it is to yields is being studied by Julien Beuzelin, LSU AgCenter entomologist.

(Distributed 08/06/13) NEW ORLEANS – The Vermilion Parish team of Paige Patout, Katherine Trahan and Austin Gaspard won the 4-H edition of the Great American Seafood Cook-Off contest on Aug. 4.

(Distributed 08/05/13) BATON ROUGE, La. – Nitrogen fertilizer is one of the biggest expenses faced by corn growers. Finding the appropriate amount to apply so no more is used than necessary is the goal of research by LSU AgCenter soil scientist Brenda Tubaña.

(Video 08/19/13) All ornamental plants don’t get the attention they deserve – partly because they’re not seen in their colorful glory at the nursery. On this edition of Get It Growing, horticulturist Dan Gill introduces you to an annual plant that deserves more attention. It’s called Amaranthus tricolor, and this towering beauty will definitely catch a stare or two. (Runtime: 1:40)

(Video 08/12/13) If you’ve noticed a crusty grey or green growth on the branches of your plants, there’s no need to be alarmed. On this edition of Get It Growing, LSU AgCenter horticulturist Dan Gill explains that these are lichens, and they are harmless. (Runtime: 1:40)

Pride of Barbados is a great, small-growing tropical tree. You see more of these planted in Houston, San Antonio and Austin, Texas, than you do in Louisiana. But we should use these plants much more. Whenever garden centers have them in stock, they are liquidated quickly.

(Distributed 08/02/13) BATON ROUGE, La. – The LSU AgCenter Botanic Gardens and Burden Horticulture Society will present its annual corn maze at Burden Sept. 28-29 from 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. in conjunction with the LSU Rural Life Museum’s Harvest Days.

(Distributed 08/02/13) BATON ROUGE, La. – Denise Holston-West, registered dietitian and program manager for the LSU AgCenter’s Smart Bodies program, is the winner of the 2013 Southern Region Excellence in Extension Award.

(Audio 08/05/13) Young trees have not established a good root system. These trees need more water, especially if we experience dry conditions. Mulch can help trees' roots retain moisture. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Audio 08/05/13) Coleus offers beautiful foliage rather than flowers. You can find different varieties of coleus at your nursery. Make sure your purchase the right type for your landscape. Some can tolerate sun; others prefer shade. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Video News 08/02/13) A highly contagious citrus disease has been confirmed in New Orleans, and homeowners with citrus trees are urged to be on the lookout for it. LSU AgCenter correspondent Tobie Blanchard reports on the symptoms of citrus canker and what to do it you suspect your tree has the disease. (Runtime: 2:00)

(Distributed 08/02/13) HAMMOND, La. – Popular foliage landscape plants from the 1970s and 1980s are being brought back again with the introduction of great new varieties. They include the once-popular alternantheras, also called Joseph’s coat, and copperleaf or copper plants.

(Distributed 08/02/13) CROWLEY, La. – A group of Colombian rice industry representatives visited the LSU AgCenter Rice Research Station and toured Arkansas and Louisiana rice-growing regions. The group is part of a consortium formed to decide how funds, resulting from the Free Trade agreement with Colombia, will be spent.

(Video News 08/02/13) LSU AgCenter researchers are helping farmers fight weeds, diseases and insects. Farmers in and around central Louisiana participated in a field day to learn more about these efforts. LSU AgCenter correspondent Tobie Blanchard was there. (Runtime: 1:54)

(Distributed 08/01/13) JEANERETTE, La. – Soybean prices are likely to hover in the $12-$13 per bushel range until this year’s harvest gives a clearer picture of the U.S. crop yield, according to Kurt Guidry, LSU AgCenter economist.

(Audio 08/05/13) Eggplants, bell peppers and sweet peppers are popular in summer gardens. These plants can withstand the summer heat. They may need some care before they start producing again in fall. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Audio 08/05/13) It is not unusual to have long dry spells in late summer. Plants will need water during these times, but people can make the mistake of watering frequently and lightly. Hear more to learn the proper way to water your plants during dry spells. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(Audio 08/05/13) Spider mites are often a problem late in the summer. Spider mites prefer dry conditions and are found on vegetables and ornamentals. They can be controlled with a couple of different products. (Runtime: 60 seconds)

(For Release On Or After 08/30/13) The Knock Out rose has become amazingly popular over the past 10 years. This rose has singlehandedly changed the market for roses since its introduction and has ushered in a whole new way to look at roses and use them in our landscapes.

(For Release On Or After 08/23/13) When you walk outside this time of the year, the heat and humidity are almost unbearable. At times you can hardly breathe. Imagine you are a plant in your landscape. You can’t just go inside and cool off. Instead, you have to stand there and take the heat day after day, night after night.

(For Release On Or After 08/16/13) Most gardeners agree that gardening would be a lot more fun if we didn’t have to deal with weeds. Weeds are nature’s way of reminding us who is really in charge. Stop mowing the lawn and weeding beds for just one summer, and you’ll see what I mean.

(For Release On Or After 08/09/13) Most gardeners are aware of the important relationship plants have with light. We are forever talking about the light preferences of plants. And every garden reference stresses how important it is to provide the proper light for different plants – indoors or outside.

(For Release On Or After 08/02/13) You can do many things to protect your plants from damage. Here are a few to consider.

(Video 08/05/13) Crape myrtles are grown throughout Louisiana because they are reliable and beautiful, but you may have noticed the appearance of black spots and some yellow, orange and red leaves on your trees. As horticulturist Dan Gill explains on this edition of Get It Growing, it’s not a sign of an early fall, but a disease. (Runtime: 1:36)