(Distributed 06/01/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – Louisiana specialty crop producers will have an opportunity to learn the ins and outs of marketing to local groceries, restaurants and other retail outlets during one-day workshop presented by the LSU AgCenter on June 18 and 19.

CROWLEY, La. – Recent weather has not been ideal for growing rice because of frequent rainy and cloudy weather, LSU AgCenter experts told farmers at field days on May 28 in Jefferson Davis and Vermilion parishes.

(Distributed 05/29/15) SHREVEPORT, La. – Ricky Kilpatrick, LSU AgCenter northwest area forestry agent, has been named the Extension Forester of the Year by the Forest Landowners Association, a national advocacy group.

(Distributed 05/29/15) HAMMOND, La. – If you like the flowering habit of shade-loving impatiens, you’ll be excited to know more about the impatiens that boldly go when no impatiens have gone before – into full sun.

(Distributed 05/25/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – Persistent wet weather is creating conditions for Entomosporium leaf spot to make an appearance in Louisiana. Caused by the fungus Entomosporium mespili, it’s a common disease of various woody ornamentals in the family Rosaceae.

(Distributed 05/28/15) WINNFIELD, La. – Carolyn Whisonant Lang, of Atlanta, Louisiana, in Winn Parish, has been named the national winner of the 2015 4-H Outstanding Lifetime Volunteer award.

(Distributed 05/28/15) CHASE, La. – This time of year should be the “heart” of sweet potato planting season in Louisiana. But instead, the production schedule is being delayed by unrelenting rain.

(Distributed 05/27/15) ST. JOSEPH, La. – The LSU AgCenter Northeast Research Station in St. Joseph will host a crop production and pest management field day on June 17.

(Distributed 05/25/15) Copper plants are great foliage plants for the summer and fall landscape.

(Distributed 05/22/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – Two scientists from a university in Slovakia are at the LSU AgCenter Food Incubator for three weeks of intensive training. They’re hoping to start a similar incubator back home.

(Distributed 05/22/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – Many varieties of shrubs and trees are no longer grown any in Louisiana landscapes, but that’s about to change with the help of LSU AgCenter researchers.

(Distributed 05/22/15) HAMMOND, La. – The past ten years have seen increased interest in growing olive trees in the southeastern United States. In Louisiana, a number of individuals and businesses have planted a few olive trees. In addition to culinary and processing quality of the fruit, olives can be long-lived trees with finely textured

(Distributed 05/22/15) BATON ROUGE, La – An LSU AgCenter scientist has received more than $187,000 for research to develop smart drilling fluids used in oil and gas exploration with more efficiency and greater efficacy.

(Distributed 05/21/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – With the June 1 beginning of hurricane season rapidly approaching, Louisiana residents need to make preparations now so they have a safe food supply if a storm hits.

(Distributed 05/22/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – Heavy rains are causing problems for some Louisiana soybean and corn farmers, especially in the north part of the state where a storm system brought as much as 10 inches of rain in some areas in the past week, but sugarcane and rice are not as affected by the weather, according to LSU AgCenter experts.

(Distributed 05/22/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – Excessive rain across Louisiana is compounding already existing problems with the 2015 wheat crop and leading to what LSU AgCenter experts call a disastrous season.

(Distributed 05/20/15) CROWLEY, La. – The LSU AgCenter will host a series of rice field days across Louisiana during the growing season.

(Distributed 05/19/15) LAPLACE, La. – A dozen St. John the Baptist Parish 4-H Club members presented their plans to parish officials on May 14 for a safe room for emergency workers responding to a disaster.

(Distributed 05/18/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – As hurricane season approaches, Louisiana residents can turn to the LSU AgCenter website for tools to determine if they live in a flood zone and how to prevent storm damage. Among the resources are interactive flood maps, which have recently been updated with new features.

(Distributed 05/18/15) FARMERVILLE, La. – Twenty-two cattle producers and industry professionals graduated on May 4 from a Louisiana Master Cattleman course hosted in Farmerville by the LSU AgCenter.

(Distributed 05/18/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – Until recent years, blueberries weren’t looked at as a popular warm-season fruit compared to peaches, watermelons and others, said LSU AgCenter horticulturist Charlie Johnson.

(Distributed 05/18/15) HAMMOND, La. – Many Louisianians have watched dogwoods gradually disappear from the landscape in recent years. While environmental factors are partially to blame, some gardening mistakes can also hinder dogwood health, said Mark Windham, professor in the University of Tennessee’s Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology.

(Distributed 05/15/15) Gardeners should consider some of the new gomphrena varieties – globe amaranth – for their landscapes.

(Distributed 05/15/15) CROWLEY, La. – Students from across south Louisiana met May 12 at the LSU AgCenter Rice Research Station to learn about career opportunities in agriculture.

(Distributed 05/15/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – This time of year, most Louisianians are acutely aware of the importance of aquaculture thanks to a unique commodity produced in this state: crawfish.

(Distributed 05/15/15) HAMMOND, La. – Daylilies are one of the most popular flowering plants for late spring and early summer Louisiana landscapes. They have reached peak bloom about three weeks early this spring because of the lack of significant cold weather in February and March.

(Distributed 05/15/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – Focusing on the theme “Louisiana’s Coast: Our Unique Culture,” more than 250 students from across the state competed in the second annual Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority and 4-H Youth Wetlands Program poetry contest.

(Distributed 05/14/15) WINNSBORO, La. – The LSU AgCenter will host a workshop on June 9 for farmers and consultants to learn how to reduce off-target pesticide drift and to use new technologies at the LSU AgCenter Macon Ridge Research Station.

(Distributed 05/13/15)HAMMOND, La. – More than 250 Louisiana Master Gardener volunteers experienced the royal treatment while learning and competing for prizes at an appreciation day held at the LSU AgCenter Hammond Research Station on May 8.

(Distributed 05/13/15) MANSURA, La. – A dozen individuals were recognized on May 9 as the newest selections for the Louisiana 4-H Hall of Fame.

(Distributed 05/12/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – Unpasteurized, raw milk can harbor several bacteria that can cause severe illness, particularly in young children, the elderly and immune-compromised individuals, said an LSU AgCenter food safety specialist.

(Distributed 05/12/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – A recent outbreak of the bacteria Listeria monocytogenes in ice cream has demonstrated how challenging it can be to prevent foodborne illness.

(Distributed 05/11/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – A new disease is making its appearance on loropetalum plants in Louisiana nurseries and landscapes. It’s caused by a bacterium called Pseudomonas savastanoi, which is also known to cause galls or knots on olives and oleanders, said LSU AgCenter plant pathologist Raj Singh. Other important known hosts include ash, privet and forsythia.

(Distributed 05/11/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – Monsanto and the Thomas A. Plein Foundation are helping support students in the LSU College of Agriculture by establishing two new scholarships.

(Distributed 05/08/15) Luna hibiscus was named a Louisiana Super Plant in spring 2014. It comes in four colors and is a hardy hibiscus for Louisiana.

(Distributed 05/08/15) HAMMOND, La. – Roses are completing their initial spring bloom across Louisiana, and one group of roses is getting a good deal of attention.

(Distributed 05/07/15) BATON ROUGE, La – The 2015 Louisiana 4-H Commodity Ambassador contests were held on April 28 on the LSU campus in Baton Rouge. In all, 98 4-H’ers from across the state competed in the chicken, egg, seafood, sugar and turkey ambassador contests.

(Distributed 05/06/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – The LSU AgCenter has published five new information brochures on home vegetable gardening in Louisiana.

(Distributed 05/06/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – The LSU Dairy Science Club recognized an animal science professor, a long-time dairyman and students at its annual banquet at the LSU Student Union on May 2.

(Distributed 05/04/15) SHREVEPORT, La. – More than 350 Louisiana 4-H regional shooting sports winners participated in the 4-H State Shooting Sports competition held in Shreveport and Grand Cane, Louisiana, on April 23-26.

(Distributed 05/05/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – Agriculture has led Joseph Musa around the world, from his native Sierra Leone to a university in Costa Rica, and most recently to Louisiana, where he is a visiting scholar at the LSU AgCenter.

(Distributed 05/04/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – A tour of small local family farms north of Baton Rouge is scheduled for May 17. Sponsored by the Louisiana Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education Professional Development Program, the tour will provide an opportunity for urban consumers to visit local sustainable farms and to appreciate the contribution of these local businesses to our local food system.

(Distributed 05/01/15) BOSSIER CITY, La. – With cattle prices at or near historic levels, it seems to be a good time to be a cattle producer. According to an economist and beef researchers presenting at the Northwest Beef and Forage Day at the LSU AgCenter Red River Research Station, it is a good time, but producers need to plan and manage their cattle to maximize their investments.

(Distributed 05/01/15) Frostproof gardenia is a great plant for home gardeners to enjoy. It is a Louisiana Super Plant selection.

(Distributed 05/01/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – Getting close to farm animals and learning where food comes from provide learning with a twist at Farm Day at the LSU AgCenter campus dairy on April 28.

(Distributed 05/01/15) HAMMOND, La. – With spring in full swing, it’s time for another Louisiana Super Plant announcement from the LSU AgCenter.

(Distributed 05/01/15) BATON ROUGE, La. – As foreign countries and the U.S. demand more of each other’s agriculture products, new economic opportunities that may benefit Louisiana are growing.