Mississippi Landmarks July 2015 by Mississippi State University Extension Service

Volume 11, Number 2

JULY 2015

Research Keeps Chicks Warm and Productive … page 6 Research, Education, and Extension in the Division of Agriculture, Forestry, and Veterinary Medicine

• • • Mississippi State University

Contents On the Cover

MSU Extension animal environment specialist John Linhoss and USDA agricultural engineer Jody Purswell studied the efficiency of radiant heaters at keeping brooding chicks warm and productive. (Photo by Kevin Hudson)

Natural Resource Conservation MSUâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Coastal Plain Branch Experiment Station supports an integrated research and education program.

Keeping Chicks Warm An MSU poultry researcher studies the efficiency of poultry house heaters.

Potential Niche Crop An MSU researcher is studying sesame as a potential niche crop for Mississippi producers.

Virtual Incubator Program A new Extension program helps clients identify the kind of online presence their businesses need.

Enhancing Crappie Production A Forest and Wildlife Research Center graduate student hopes to improve crappie production by widening their breeding window.

Ten Years Later Hurricane Katrinaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s impact on the state was severe, but Mississippians are recovering and even thriving.

Pasture-Raised Pork Specialty markets in pork production are cropping up across the U.S., and Mississippi producers have entered this market.

2015 Alumni of the Year The division honored alumni from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, College of Forest Resources, and College of Veterinary Medicine.

County Profile Hancock County features abundant natural resources as well as a thriving art and cultural community.

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News Notes The division takes note of faculty, staff, and student accomplishments.

Development Corner A new endowment will help establish a full precision-agriculture certificate program.

Vice President’s Letter We in the MSU Division of Agriculture, Forestry, and Veterinary Medicine have many exciting developments to share in the pages of Mississippi LandMarks with our friends and supporters. The continuing support of Mississippi’s elected officials during the most recent legislative session demonstrates their trust in us and the work we do. We couldn’t fulfill our land-grant mission without this important partnership with our state’s leaders. The division’s work reaches across the state, with Extension offices in all 82 counties, 16 MAFES branch experiment stations, four Research and Extension Centers, four veterinary diagnostic laboratories, and 16 Bulldog Forests. As our enrollment grows at MSU and within DAFVM, we are determined to support our students with state-of-the-art learning spaces. Construction projects around campus are ongoing, with the new classroom building at the Wise Center due to be completed and ready for use this fall. In April, MSU President Mark Keenum announced the formation of a new 2+2 agreement with Hinds Community College (HCC) focused on precision agriculture. In addition to this program with HCC and our existing precision-agriculture emphasis in the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, we will launch a multidisciplinary precision-agriculture initiative this fall, encompassing undergraduate scholarships, graduate student research assistantships, and multidepartment research funding. We also will begin planning for a certificate program in precision agriculture. These initiatives are supported, in part, by the generosity of Fortune 500 Company Monsanto and an endowment from Diane Hawks. For more information about the precision-agriculture program at MSU, please read the Development Corner on pages 30–31. Strong relationships with the various agricultural commodity groups around the state are vitally important to our work. Earlier this year, we bade farewell to Sammy Blossom, who served as the executive vice president of the Mississippi Cattlemen’s Association for 18 years. We wish Sammy all the best and thank him for his years of service, and welcome Andy Berry, the association’s new executive vice president. We also welcome a new partner in our efforts to serve Mississippi’s farmers and farm families: Mike McCormick, the new president of the Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation. We are excited to be working with Mike and his team on a variety of issues of concern to our shared clients. In May, a longtime friend of MSU and the division began serving a 9-year term as Governor Phil Bryant’s appointee to the Institutions of Higher Learning Board of Trustees: Chip Morgan, who has served as the executive vice president of Delta Council since 1982. We congratulate him on this notable achievement and look forward to his work on behalf of the state’s higher-education system. Though it took some time for the fields to be dry enough to plant, the growing season is progressing. While we are already anticipating great things from this season’s work, we want to take a moment to celebrate records and near records set by farmers last year. Corn and soybean producers set yield records: 185 bushels per acre and 52 bushels per acre, respectively. The total value of farm production in 2014 was the second highest ever at just over $7.7 billion, which included new records for cattle and calves at $397 million and broilers at $2.87 billion. We appreciate your continued interest in Mississippi State and your support of the work we do in the Division of Agriculture, Forestry, and Veterinary Medicine.

Research, Education, and Extension in the Division of Agriculture, Forestry, and Veterinary Medicine

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LandMarks is published quarterly by the Division of Agriculture, Forestry, and Veterinary Medicine at Mississippi State University. Mark E. Keenum

President

Gregory A. Bohach

Vice President

Gary B. Jackson

Director, MSU Extension Service

George M. Hopper

Dean, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences Dean, College of Forest Resources Director, Forest and Wildlife Research Center Director, Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station

Kent H. Hoblet

Dean, College of Veterinary Medicine

LandMarks is produced by the Office of Agricultural Communications. Elizabeth Gregory North Keryn Page Robyn Hearn

Executive Editor Editor Assistant Editor

Annette Woods

Graphic Designer

Vanessa Beeson M. K. W. Belant Linda Breazeale Bonnie Coblentz Susan Collins-Smith Nathan Gregory Keri Collins Lewis Addie Mayfield

Writers

Linda Breazeale Russ Houston Kevin Hudson Kat Lawrence Jim Lytle Ben Posadas Bob Ratliff

Photographers

For a subscription to LandMarks or an address change, call (662) 325-2262.

We are an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Available on the World Wide Web www.dafvm.msstate.edu/landmarks

Gregory A. Bohach

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JULY 2015

Three of the five planned demonstration areas at the coastal station have been completed: a nature trail and lake, an 80-acre mixed pine and hardwood timber stand, and a backyard habitat.

Coastal Plain Station Focuses on

NATURAL RESOURCE CONSERVATION

Photo by Brett Rushing

Once one of Mississippi State University’s premier dairy research facilities, the Coastal Plain Branch Experiment Station changed its focus in 2005. “When dairies began to close in the early 2000s as a result of the economic landscape, we took a look at what clients in the area could benefit from,” said Adam Rohnke, wildlife biologist with the MSU Extension Service. “We knew the best option would be to provide research and hands-on learning opportunities aimed at land management with an emphasis on natural resources and conservation.” The 1,172-acre station in Newton County now supports an integrated research and education program directed at adults, children, and natural-resource professionals. It will include five demonstration areas: agriculture, forestry, wildlife management, backyard habitat, and a nature trail and pond. A small beef-cattle herd replaced the dairy herd, and soybeans are grown as part of the station’s agricultural research. “Our goal is to provide landowners with tangible examples of how to optimize all of the natural-resource assets on their property sustainably and, at the same time, provide educational opportunities for the general public and professionals,” said Rohnke, who served on the team that helped direct the station’s

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new vision. “When we began the redesign, we asked ourselves, ‘How can we turn every element of this station into a learning opportunity for both children and adults?’” Development of new infrastructure at the station is completed as funding becomes available. A strong network of federal, state, and local natural-resource agency partners provided funding, technical assistance, and in-kind contributions toward the station’s continuing development. The demonstration area is a continuing project of the university’s Natural Resource Enterprises program. Three of the five demonstration areas have been completed, including the backyard habitat, the nature trail and lake, and an 80-acre mixed pine and hardwood timber stand. Educational signs in each area explain how to manage farm ponds, design nature trails, and install a wildlife-friendly landscape. The areas also serve as outdoor classrooms for youth activities. Since 2008, Extension and Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station personnel, with cooperation from allied organizations, have provided educational programs at the station for 750 students and hundreds of landowners and professionals. Seven professional workshops, training programs, and short courses have been held at the station. Most recently, the station hosted a prescribed-burn workshop for landowners.

The forestry demonstration area focuses on research specifically for loblolly pine varietal performance and the potential of growing switchgrass within traditional pine stands. Other forestry research at the station includes a hardwood mixing study that examines the performance of cherry bark oak, willow oak, and swamp chestnut oak when mixed with river birch, sweetgum, and eastern cottonwood. These projects are conducted under the direction of Dr. Randy Rousseau, an Extension and research professor in the MSU Forest and Wildlife Research Center. When Dr. Brett Rushing joined the team last year, the station’s agricultural research continued to expand. Rushing studies the use of native grasses for forage and conservation purposes, as well as herbaceous biomass crop production. “My research concentrates on sustainable production and use of forages for livestock producers,” said Rushing, an Extension and MAFES research professor. “This involves managing soil fertility, increasing forage utilization, and diversifying forages in a producer’s grazing system, ultimately improving soil health, reducing feeding costs, and improving wildlife habitat.” Native, warm-season grasses are ideal for the Southeast. They are drought tolerant and provide an excellent source of summer forage for cattle and suitable cover for grassland birds and small mammals. However, most commercially available varieties originate from the Midwest and Northeast. Rushing said he believes locally adapted varieties will perform much better than the varieties on the market now. “Commercially available native, warm-season grass varieties are still relatively wild, and they don’t germinate well,” Rushing said. “Our field trials prove that the native grasses bred for enhanced establishment qualities outperform traditional varieties, which will enable them to be released and licensed for sale.” In a separate study, Rushing is comparing performance of several native, warm-season grasses with bahiagrass, which is grown by about 30 percent of central and south Mississippi cattlemen. “Bahiagrass is easy to establish and is tolerant to a somewhat low soil pH, but it provides no grassland habitat for wildlife and produces moderate weight gains for grazing cattle,” he said. “This study could help us recommend a better forage for cattle producers that can also protect the wildlife on and near their property.” Rushing is also working with canola, a potential biofuel crop that could be used to make biodiesel. Rushing participates in a national canola variety trial, which could prove that canola is a valuable crop for Mississippi farmers. “There is a slight interest in the use of canola as an alternative crop that could produce biodiesel in the Deep South,” Rushing said. “Canola would be a potential cool-season rotational crop like wheat. Our trial is located the farthest south. If the trials do well, we could use our data to leverage future funding to investigate production and management strategies for the Southeast.”

“Our goal is to provide landowners with tangible examples of how to optimize all of the natural-resource assets on their property sustainably and, at the same time, provide educational opportunities for the general public and professionals.”

鵻鵼 Adam Rohnke

By Susan Collins-Smith • Photos by Kevin Hudson

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JULY 2015

Research Keeps Chicks

Warm and Productive

Photo by Susan Collins-Smith

When brooding chicks are warm, they grow well in poultry houses, but when heaters are not operating efficiently, it drives up the already high cost of broiler production. This is the problem John Linhoss, an animal environment specialist with the MSU Extension Service, took on for his doctoral research. His study was conducted in cooperation with the USDA Agricultural Research Service Poultry Research Unit in Starkville. “Radiant heaters are the preferred method of providing heat to chicks during brooding because they are a localized heat source that provides a range of thermal comfort zones to chicks,” Linhoss said. “Although they are used extensively in the broiler industry, very little is known about how efficient they are at providing useful heat to brooding chicks.” Chicks are brought to broiler houses when they are 1 day old, but they cannot thermoregulate—or maintain a constant core internal temperature—for the first several days of life. They require external heat sources to keep them warm. Day-old chicks need a temperature of about 92 degrees, but their need for supplemental heat diminishes as they age. Linhoss set up a system to test the efficiency of six radiant heaters, known as brooders, made by four major manufacturers. The industry recommends that brooders be placed 5 feet above poultry house litter, so Linhoss set up tests at 4, 5, and 6 feet above the litter. He made sensor arrays that recorded 160 radiant flux readings—or measurements of the density of heat energy—within the heated area of each brooder. Linhoss suspended these sensors 3 inches above a bed of pine shavings. “We developed a system that uses radiant flux sensors to measure the heat that reaches the floor,” Linhoss said. “This system is unique in that the sensors directly measure the heat energy in BTUs per square foot.” MSU Extension animal environment specialist John Linhoss and USDA agricultural engineer Jody Purswell set up test heaters at 4, 5, and 6 feet above the litter. Linhoss’s research calculated the total thermal energy hitting the floor and determined the efficiency of each heater. Results showed heaters typically do not match the size of modern poultry houses.

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Unlike temperature data collected in previous studies, this information can be used to quantify the total amount of energy reaching the floor each hour. It can also be used to compare the radiant energy that reaches the floor with the energy released from burning propane in the heaters. Linhoss said this is the most accurate method currently available to measure the efficiency of radiant heaters. “We were able to calculate the total energy hitting the floor and determine how efficient each of the heaters is,” Linhoss said. “No one has ever had this information before. There’s been a lot of recommendations made in the past, and we’re trying to put the science behind them regarding the placement of brooders, cleaning of brooders, and general operations.” Linhoss said there are about 100,000 commercial poultry houses in the country, and each uses an estimated 4,000 gallons of propane each year. “If we could improve the efficiency of radiant brooders by 5 percent across the industry, we could save an estimated 20 million gallons of propane a year,” he said. “At roughly $1.50 per gallon, this savings would total roughly $30 million.” One of the big discoveries Linhoss made was that radiant heaters are only about 50 percent efficient at heating the floor, where the chicks are. The remaining heat moves upward to the ceiling and is not directly beneficial to the chicks. This means growers are getting only half their money’s worth from the propane they purchase. “Because keeping the chicks warm is so energy intensive, if we can reduce the energy consumption, it can have a big impact on the growers’ bottom line,” Linhoss said. “But it’s not just about the bottom line. If we can create a thermal environment that is optimal for the chicks when they are brooding, then overall, we have healthier chickens.” Chicks that are comfortable eat more consistently and have a better feed-to-growth conversion ratio. Linhoss’s research will provide the data needed to support industry recommendations on correct brooder placement, maintenance, cleaning, and efficiency. Jody Purswell, a USDA agricultural engineer, said the idea for the study came from similar work done with heaters used in the swine industry. He said research is needed to keep up with many of the changes the industry has undergone in recent years. “Modern chicken houses being built this year are very different than those built years ago,” Purswell said. “We’ve started designing bigger buildings with more air flow, but we’re still specifying equipment as we did for small houses.” He said Linhoss’s data could be scaled easily to apply to any size of poultry house, making energy-efficiency decisions possible. “One of the big things we found is that how much heat you actually put into the building for the chicks is a significant mismatch to the rating of the heater,” he said. “What that means for the manufacturers is those heaters are running longer than they should, so we can potentially see some fuel savings if we can make the heaters match the size of the buildings better.” Purswell said it would also help the chicks themselves, as many do not move as they should when they get cold. “Chicks regulate their temperature by physically moving,” he said. “Some never get it and hang out in the cold spots. With this data, we can place the heaters to meet the needs of all the chicks.”

By Bonnie Coblentz • Photos by Kevin Hudson

Linhoss studied the efficiency of radiant heaters at keeping brooding chicks warm and productive.

• • • JULY 2015

Examining Sesame as a Potential Niche Crop for Mississippi

Dr. Wayne Ebelhar is studying sesame as a potential niche crop for Mississippi producers. Until now, growers had to rely on recommendations from Texas.

Mississippi farmers interested in growing sesame have to rely mainly on recommendations made for Texas fields, a problem Mississippi State University researchers are working to address. Sesame produces small, edible seeds valued for consumption and oil production. Consumers recognize it most frequently as the tasty seeds on hamburger buns, but a lot of cooking is done with sesame oil. When the seed is toasted, it has a nutty smell and pleasant taste. In 2014, MSU researchers with the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station grew small amounts of sesame at the Delta Research and Extension Center in Stoneville and the Pontotoc Ridge-Flatwoods Branch Experiment Station near Pontotoc. Dr. Wayne Ebelhar, MAFES research professor, planted 96 sesame test plots in a half-acre area at Stoneville. He said Mississippi farmers do not have much locally generated information to guide them in growing sesame.

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“We’re trying to look at its potential under Mississippi growing conditions in order to provide our producers with the best information about growing this crop,” Ebelhar said. “The only growers’ guide our farmers have comes from Texas, and a lot of the information said these practices ‘should’ work.” Ebelhar grew four different sesame varieties and tested them using four different nitrogen fertilization rates ranging from 40 to 100 pounds per acre. He ended up harvesting yields around 1,000 pounds of sesame seeds per acre. Simply getting it planted was a challenge, he said, and planting was a little late. Harvesting the tiny seeds was also tricky. “We couldn’t use a regular planter because the seed was so light it went everywhere,” he said. “We planted with a cone planter and attempted to plant about 25 seeds per foot, hoping for four to five plants per foot.

“We set the combine to give us a little bit dirtier harvest than a farmer normally would use, and then used an air cleaner/separator to clean the seed after harvest,” Ebelhar said. Sesame is a broadleaf, summer crop with a growth habit similar to cotton and soybeans. It normally grows 3 to 5 feet tall, but it can reach up to 6 feet tall with good soil moisture and fertility. Varieties can be single-stemmed or branched. The plant produces seeds in capsules that are about an inch long and slightly narrower than a pencil in diameter. It grows a main stem with a seed capsule produced at every leaf. Sesame flowers are white and bloom over a long period, starting about 35 to 45 days after planting and stopping about 75 to 85 days after planting. “A positive aspect of sesame is that it attracts pollinators during the long bloom period,” Ebelhar said. “The field was literally humming because there were so many bees and honeybees.” Dr. Mark Shankle, MAFES research professor, grew about 2 acres of sesame in Pontotoc County in order to work on potential weed control options for the crop. Sesame is a specialty crop, and chemical companies typically cannot justify research and development efforts for small-acreage commodities due to the low return on investment. “We plan to develop research data to support herbicide labels for use in sesame,” Shankle said. “We know what weeds we can control with certain herbicides, but we do not know how the herbicide is going to affect the crop itself.” Shankle said herbicide rate, placement, and application time relative to the crop stage could affect the degree of injury to the crop.

Sesame is primarily grown in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Alabama. Seed is available through just one company in Texas, and so far, only a very few people are growing it in Mississippi. “As with any niche crop, I don’t expect there to ever be a lot of sesame, but if a farmer has the opportunity to try something new and make a little money on it, I think it’s our obligation at Mississippi State to study that crop and try to help them,” Ebelhar said. The study started out small and focused on nitrogen management, but Ebelhar gave seed samples to two U.S. Department of Agriculture researchers who are working with seed quality, measuring oil and protein content. They are also interested in disease problems with the crop. “Having the crop already growing provides for collaborative efforts across agencies that ultimately will benefit producers,” Ebelhar said. MSU researchers plan to grow sesame again in 2015, gathering data that will help any of the state’s producers who are interested in growing this crop commercially.

By Bonnie Coblentz • Photos by Kevin Hudson

Sesame is a broadleaf summer crop with growth similar to cotton and soybeans. It can reach up to 6 feet tall with good soil moisture and fertility. Sesame produces tiny, edible seeds valued for consumption and oil production.

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JULY 2015

INCUBATOR PROGRAM Improves Online Sales

Lara Bowman is an MSU Extension instructor with the Virtual Incubator Program, which helps small business owners improve their online presence by learning and adopting best practices for marketing and sales on the Internet.

Left photo: (From left) Bowman looks at business websites with VIP participants Amanda Avera and Joy Chandler. Right photo: VIP participants (from left) Sherri Fairchild, Susan Byra, Avera, and Chandler discuss how to tap into markets outside their hometowns.

Dean Mann’s pillow-making hobby made her an occasional dollar after she posted her products on Facebook “for sale” group pages in her hometown of Starkville. One of Mann’s customers was Lara Bowman, an instructor with the Mississippi State University Extension Center for Technology Outreach. Bowman happened to know how Mann could expand her hobby into a business. “Lara taught me how to set up online accounts and how to maintain and update them,” Mann said. “I enjoy having an Etsy shop and making pillows because it’s a hobby. I’m not depending on it by any means, but a lot of people do. Those people would benefit greatly from the courses Lara teaches.” Those Extension courses are part of the Virtual Incubator Program (VIP), which is designed to help Mississippi small businesses improve their online presence by learning and adopting best practices for marketing and sales on the Internet.

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Mann’s shop on Etsy, a peer-to-peer e-commerce website focused on handmade or vintage items and supplies, has been open for nearly a year. Her increased online presence on social media platforms, including Pinterest, Facebook, and Instagram, has led to an uptick in visibility and sales. Since last March, she’s sold more than 120 items. Bowman said one of VIP’s goals is to identify the kind of online presence businesses need to have based on their markets. “Each business has unique needs, and VIP will help a business owner determine those needs and goals to improve their online presence,” Bowman said. “We are living in a digital world where 81 percent of Americans ages 18 and over use the Internet. A business needs an online presence of some sort now.” VIP was introduced last year in Yalobusha County, where two participating businesses created websites and increased their online presence and exposure. In March, Bowman began a second program in Clarke County. Five business owners, whose backgrounds range from retail to garden nurseries, are participating in this year’s program. Quitman, the county seat, was the smallest of several Mississippi towns chosen by C Spire last year for Fiber to the Home, a program designed to install infrastructure that allows for faster Internet speeds. That development made Clarke County a natural fit for VIP’s next stop. Helping entrepreneurs tap into markets outside their hometowns helps them achieve the profit and visibility needed to encourage growth in smaller communities, Bowman said. “The big picture of VIP is to grow businesses at the base level of the community and help them grow into the online market,” Bowman said. “Helping to incubate a business into an online environment means your market does not have to be limited to your community anymore. You have an entirely new audience online you can market to. If we can help a business grow into an online market, we’re helping it reach those new audiences so they can expand their services and sales.” The 9-month program is divided into two phases. The first phase includes instruction by Extension faculty for 3 months during 12 workshops. After the courses are finished, Extension faculty members continue to work with participants for 6 months to help them use the coursework information to increase online traffic and sales. Selecting the services entrepreneurs want to provide dictates the Internet platform VIP uses to help them achieve higher exposure, Bowman said. “Our goal is to help existing and potential businesses,” Bowman said. “I’m not just targeting brick-and-mortar businesses, but individuals, as well. Anyone who thinks they could take their hobbies and talents and make them into a business would benefit from VIP.”

With help from Lara Bowman and the Virtual Incubator Program, Dean Mann expanded her pillow-making hobby into a business.

“Each business has unique needs, and VIP will help a business owner determine those needs and goals to improve their online presence. We are living in a digital world where 81 percent of Americans ages 18 and over use the Internet. A business needs an online presence of some sort now.”

鵻鵼 Lara Bowman

By Nathan Gregory • Photos by Kevin Hudson

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JULY 2015

ENHANCED CRAPPIE PRODUCTION Boosting the Recreation Industry rough

Submitted

Photo by Kat Lawrence

Charlie Culpepper, a graduate student in the Forest and Wildlife Research Center, is studying methods to better manage and optimize crappie reproduction.

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Days grow longer, water temperatures rise, and Mississippi’s freshwater fish begin to spawn. For the hatcheries responsible for stocking the state’s lakes, Mother Nature offers a narrow and unpredictable window for breeding fish effectively. What if conditions could be controlled within hatcheries so the intense seasonal workload could be dispersed over time? This ability would be especially beneficial for the popular black, white, and hybrid triploid Magnolia crappie. In collaboration with the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks (MDWFP), Charlie Culpepper is studying methods to better manage and optimize crappie reproduction. Culpepper, a graduate student in the MSU Forest and Wildlife Research Center, said he hopes his research will aid MDWFP fish biologists by providing reliable and effective breeding alternatives to the present system. “I’m looking at hormone-induced and out-of-season spawning, as well as the cryogenic preservation of sperm,” Culpepper said. “Current methods require the collection of females for captive spawning within a very narrow and difficult-to-determine time frame for fertility. While sperm is present in male crappie at any time, it’s typically collected when needed for fertilization.” This approach means hatchery personnel are collecting material from both males and females during the same time frame, which often overlaps the reproductive windows for multiple fish species produced at the hatcheries. Mississippi hatcheries produced more than 3.7 million fish between June 2013 and December 2014. Of these, more than 500,000 crappie were used to stock Mississippi lakes. Being able to preserve viable sperm and to induce female spawning in a tank system without seasonal restriction would allow fish hatchery biologists to manage the reproduction process and timing. This ability would stabilize the workflow and potentially increase hatchery production of crappie fry, which are raised to fingerling size before release. Culpepper’s research has already identified effective methods that could be used to improve current practices. He tested three common spawning-induction hormones and identified a preferred treatment. Additional testing to confirm and specify these findings is planned for this year. If this research were applied, fish hatcheries would be able to collect female crappie without missing the natural spawning window. The new method would save time and money, and it could also improve the success rate of reproduction because more variables are controlled. In collaboration with the Louisiana State University Aquaculture Research Station, Culpepper identified an effective cryoprotectant-buffering solution capable of safely preserving crappie sperm for fertilization at a later date. Preserving crappie sperm would allow hatcheries to handle the male and female fish at different times. “This development improves two aspects of crappie reproduction efforts,” Culpepper said. “There’s a management efficiency benefit by the reduction in labor and cost when you take half of the fish out of the picture. There’s also the genetic benefit of selecting certain traits in crappie for breeding.” The third aspect of Culpepper’s research involved controlling variables related to spawning season. Dr. Peter Allen, Culpepper’s supervising professor and a researcher in the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, explained these variables.

Photo by Kat Lawrence

Dr. Peter Allen supervises Culpepper’s research projects. Allen said one aspect of the research involves controlling variables related to spawning season. “You can control water temperature and photoperiod— amount of daylight, amount of nighttime—which, in effect, controls the season for spawning,” Allen said. “Once fish are reproductively mature, then you can induce spawning with a hormone treatment.” Tom Holman, MDWFP fisheries coordinator, said Culpepper’s study of out-of-season spawning variables supported crappie brood stock production. “The crappie brood stock breeding window is very short, and the conditions must be optimal,” Holman said. “Charlie managed water quality, temperature, and light, which lengthened the window for brooding in a hatchery setting.” If manipulating these variables can induce spawning early, larger fingerlings can be stocked, which may improve survival. And that is good news for the recreational fishing industry. “Crappie is one of the species of inland fishes for which Mississippi is known; it’s a delicious fish,” Allen said. “Crappie reproduce really well given the right conditions, but every couple of years the population will drop, presumably because you don’t have proper spawning conditions. Our goal is to help recreational anglers have a consistently good experience.” According to the most recent U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service survey, Mississippi is home to more than 600,000 people who love to fish, and more than 50,000 out-of-state guests buy fishing licenses here each year, generating $528 million in economic activity in the state.

By M. K. W. Belant and Keri Collins Lewis

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JULY 2015

FOCUS

Research, Education, and Extension in the Division of Agriculture, Forestry, and Veterinary Medicine

Years Later

A Hurricane Katrina Update

Photo by Bob Ratliff

Hurricanes can be measured, categorized, and analyzed. Scientists can compare a storm’s size, surge, and speed with historic data and put the statistics into perspective. They can even be named, as the United States began doing in 1953, giving some people the dubious honor of sharing their moniker with events of widespread devastation. Camille. Frederic. Elena. Georges. Katrina. But the toll these storms have taken on individuals cannot be quantified. Survivors can file insurance claims, sift through rubble, and talk about rebuilding. Family, friends, and strangers volunteer to help. Acts of kindness are balm for the weary. Resilient communities pull together to move beyond the devastation and forge a future that can withstand life’s storms, energized by a renewed understanding of what is important. Ten years ago, Hurricane Katrina ravaged Mississippi. In a matter of hours, some people lost everything: their livelihoods, their life savings, even their lives. Katrina changed our state forever. From the emotional scars that are not visible to the changed landscapes of the coast and beyond, Katrina carved a place in our individual and collective histories. To commemorate the 10-year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, we revisited some of the people, industries, and situations we covered in the storm’s aftermath. While not exhaustive, these snapshots of what has happened in the past decade, are, we hope, a small tribute to the strength and heart of every Mississippian with a Katrina story to tell. Photo by Jim Lytle

By Keri Collins Lewis

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FOCUS MSU Disaster Response Evolves

Photo by Russ Houston

Dr. Lynn Reinschmiedt, former associate dean and professor in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, was one of many DAFVM volunteers who responded to the need for assistance after Hurricane Katrina. In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, university leaders realized the importance of instituting a standardized response system to assist with all types of catastrophes that might strike the state. “Before Katrina, we didn’t have a structured system of sending volunteers to disaster sites,” said Elmo Collum, disaster preparedness coordinator with the MSU Extension Service. “We always worked to support state agencies with assessment teams and workrelief teams. This response falls under the supervision of the Department of Agriculture with guidance from the Mississippi Board of Animal Health and the Mississippi State Department of Health. “When these departments requested our help, we sent our experts or helped them get the information or materials they needed,” he said. Now, the university has preassembled teams of personnel in the Division of Agriculture, Forestry, and Veterinary Medicine (DAFVM) who have received Incident Command System (ICS) training. ICS is a standardized incident-management model that helps coordinate the response of government agencies and the private sector during all types of incidents, from natural disasters to planned events. DAFVM personnel who want to volunteer during any type of event throughout the state have been trained in ICS. Each of the four Research and Extension Center regions has two assessment teams and two work-relief teams. Assessment teams include as many as 10 people, and work-relief teams include 10 to 20 people. One set of assessment and work-relief teams in each region responds for agricul-

ture-related assistance. The other set of teams is trained to work in shelters opened for disaster victims. “We’ve come a long, long way as far as what DAFVM employees can do in a disaster,” Collum said. “When we saw that Katrina would likely strike the Mississippi coast, a team was put together to assist in Hattiesburg. We learned on the job from other states’ teams that had been trained in ICS. That experience opened our eyes.” Six months after Katrina, the Extension Center for Government and Community Development began training MSU employees, as well as local emergency management officials, 911-call-center operators, and elected and appointed officials. To date, the center has trained hundreds of MSU employees and around 20,000 state employees and officials, said Tom Ball, governmental training officer with the center. “The university’s role has always been to provide support to local agencies through the Extension Service’s county offices,” Ball explained. “There has always been a strong effort in the counties to provide support, but, until Katrina, we didn’t have the coordinated effort that we do now.” DAFVM personnel are integral parts of each county’s state emergency plan, serving in whatever capacity the county needs. Some employees help with sheltering animals during hurricane evacuations or after floods. They can answer phones or staff donation drop-off locations during relief efforts. “There is no one way that DAFVM assists,” Ball said. “We just step up and do what the county needs. We can serve in all support functions, from answering questions about row-crop salvage after a natural disaster to setting up temporary childcare locations and providing mobile uplinks for communication.” Teams have responded many times in the decade since Katrina: the Tupelo and Smithville tornadoes, the Greenville flooding, and, most recently, the Louisville tornado. Personnel train and practice for emergencies constantly. “In the 10 years since Katrina, we have expanded our response ability far beyond hurricanes,” Collum said. “We have teams in place that can respond to anything: hurricanes, floods, tornadoes. Recently, we trained for the aftermath of an earthquake since we live on the New Madrid fault line. We are also in the process of planning for any type of incident that could happen with the Grand Gulf Nuclear Facility in Port Gibson.”

By Susan Collins-Smith

When Hurricane Katrina hit, children were especially vulnerable. Mississippi State University Extension Service staff members with the Mississippi Child Care Resource and Referral Network were there to engage children. Photo by Linda Breazeale

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JULY 2015

FOCUS Forestry Industry Rebounds

Submitted photo

Tree farmer Cecil Chambliss thought Katrina had put him out of business, but 10 years later, he has changed his management practices and improved production on his south Forrest County plantation. He replanted with longleaf and slash pine, which are more resistant to high winds than loblolly pine.

As bleak as the outlook seemed for Mississippi’s forestry industry in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the state’s third largest agricultural commodity is slowly recovering. “If you drive down the road today, you can still see timber stands that don’t look like they should,” said Dr. Stephen Dicke, a forestry professor with the Mississippi State University Extension Service in the College of Forest Resources. “There was a tremendous amount of damage and a lot of misery on the part of landowners and tree farmers. But today, we have a good volume of inventory, and we are continuing to grow trees.” In just a few hours, Hurricane Katrina leveled the equivalent of what timber growers would harvest throughout Mississippi in a year. The Mississippi Forestry Commission valued the state’s loss at $900 million. Eighty percent of that loss occurred in a 10-county area from Hattiesburg to the Gulf Coast. The Mississippi Institute for Forest Inventory estimated that about 88 percent of timber in southeast Mississippi was damaged by the hurricane, with Hancock, Pearl River, Harrison, Jackson, Stone, and George Counties suffering the heaviest destruction. Growers salvaged only about 35 percent of the damaged timber, Dicke said. Without such a large forestry industry and help from other states, growers could not have saved even that much. In the midst of supporting recovery efforts, Dicke and other Extension personnel immediately organized and taught a series of educational seminars. Timber producers needed information to begin making decisions about salvage and to better understand tax laws. “Our initial effort was to make sure people had the information they needed to make decisions about salvaging timber and filing their taxes,” said Dr. Glenn Hughes, an Extension professor of forestry in the College of Forest Resources. “The news wasn’t good. But we gave them the facts, and people knew where they stood. They appreciated that.”

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Submitted photo

One landowner interested in ways to use the vast amount of damaged timber started Piney Woods Pellets in Wiggins, Mississippi. The mill converts low-value wood into pellets that can be burned to generate electricity, a product marketed primarily in Europe. A larger firm later bought the mill, and it has tripled in size. It continues to process wood and has been a bright spot for the state’s forestry industry, even through the recession that hit in 2008. “The timber market largely depends on the construction industry and the housing market,” said Dr. James Henderson, associate Extension professor of forest economics and management. “Before the recession, we were building about 2 million houses per year in the U.S., but in the trough of the recession, we were building just 500,000 houses per year. And we stayed at that level for about 3 years.” Currently, the nation builds more than 1 million houses per year, and that number is projected to reach 1.5 million by 2017, Henderson said. “With this increase in housing, lumber markets have improved,” he said, “but this is not reflected in the price received by landowners.” Locating more mills in Mississippi can alleviate that plight for the state’s timber producers. Henderson said there are positive indicators that companies in other states and countries are interested in opening mills in Mississippi. “Canada had a mountain pine beetle epidemic that has reduced their timber inventories and increased their cost of production,” he said. “Those companies are interested in reinvesting in the Southeastern United States, where there is plenty of quality timber inventory.” Although the state has more than recovered in timber volume, challenges still linger for landowners and the MSU scientists and specialists who help them.

FOCUS Forestry Industry Rebounds “Katrina left a dangerous legacy in the woody debris that remains in our forests,” Hughes said. “There is still a lot of fuel left on the ground, especially in the southern part of the state. But many of our landowners are increasingly interested in prescribed burning, which keeps the fuel level low. “We also have seen a dramatic increase in invasive species after the hurricane,” Hughes said. “Cogongrass is one of our greatest challenges. People have begun to realize the dangers posed by these plants and are interested in ways to manage them.” Landowners and tree farmers have realized other positive outcomes from the hurricane. Some landowners reviewed and modified their management practices. “Many of those who replanted pine chose to replace loblolly pine with longleaf pine, which is more resistant to storm damage,” Hughes said. “There was a lot of misery on the part of timber owners after Katrina. One good friend lost about $300,000, and another lost about $3 million. Businesses they’d spent all or much of their lives managing were devastated.” But tree farmer Cecil Chambliss said Katrina took much more than money. “There is no value I can place on the emotional impact that Katrina had,” said Chambliss, a Forrest County resident and landowner. “It was devastating to see the trees lying on the ground that had been growing just the day before as a result of the hard work by my dad, granddad, myself, and other family members.” Three days after the storm, Chambliss was able to make the 15mile drive to his family’s tree farm, which was established in 1950 in south Forrest County. Four hundred acres of mature timber, mostly longleaf pine trees, and 110 acres of plantation pine trees were severely damaged. “As I drove out there, I thought, ‘The damage doesn’t look too bad,’ but the closer I got to the farm, the damage and my apprehension increased,” he said. When he got back home, Chambliss sat down at the kitchen table, looked at his wife, and said, “Judy, I think we’re out of the timber business.” At that time, his prediction seemed true. Chambliss estimated the farm lost between 35 and 40 percent of its trees, which he valued at about $400,000. But 10 years later, Chambliss is still in business. “The only alternative was to do nothing, and that was not a viable alternative,” he said. “The only thing to do was to manage it back to where it had been.” To do that, he changed his management practices. He replanted with longleaf and slash pine. Chambliss said he is also considering shortening the rotation of some plantation pines by 5 to 7 years to reduce the risk of damage to mature, marketable timber in the future. “It’s stunning how fast it has regenerated,” Chambliss said. “Some of it we left to natural regeneration, and some we replanted. It’s coming along nicely, and it looks like within the next 10 to 15 years, it should be back to where it was before Katrina.”

Long Road to Recovery 鵻鵼

As Hurricane Katrina moved inland on the evening of August 29, 2005, decades of sacrifice and hard work that began when Judd Brooke was 4 years old lay on the ground. The hurricane passed right over his family’s 4,300-acre tree farm in Hancock County. It destroyed 60 percent of the Brookes’ marketable timber. “For the last 9 years, we’ve been recovering from the hurricane’s damage, and it has been our primary issue,” Brooke said. “Katrina took a big toll on our finances and our lives.” The Brooke family is still working to repair basic infrastructure on their property, including fire lines and roads. They are behind schedule with controlled burns that keep the ecosystem balanced and reduce the fuel load on the forest floor. Controlling invasive species and minimizing erosion are also high priorities. Brooke began to intensively manage the property in the late 1990s, but the impact of Hurricane Katrina caused him to take a hard look at his management practices. “One thing it did was reinforce my confidence in longleaf pine trees,” he said. “They are much better at withstanding high winds, but they are also better from an ecosystem standpoint for my property. “The other thing I now consider carefully is when to thin my trees. Doing it right before a hurricane can leave a forest with much more damage because it allows the windthrow to be more powerful,” Brooke said. Brooke said he tries to make educated choices about management for the land that his father purchased in the 1950s as a weekend retreat. While the timber provides income, the forest is managed in a sustainable manner that is wildlife friendly and provides educational opportunities for young people and landowners. “I depend on the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Natural Resource Conservation Service, and the MSU Extension Service to help me make the best decisions I can based on my intent for the land,” he said. “I host a lot of field days on the property for forestry associations, Boy Scouts, and other groups. I hope that I can leave the land a little better than I found it, as my dad used to say, and teach people that good stewardship can coexist with financial investment.”

By Susan Collins-Smith By Susan Collins-Smith

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JULY 2015

FOCUS Fund Continues Helping Animals

Katrina displaced both family pets and large animals. MSU’s College of Veterinary Medicine sent a team of veterinarians to assist at the animal disaster relief shelter in Jackson.

Photo by Jim Lytle

In the hours immediately following Hurricane Katrina’s landfall, a team of Mississippi State University veterinarians specially trained to work with animals in disaster situations arrived at the state’s designated animal disaster relief shelter in Jackson. While the Mississippi Animal Response Team’s immediate focus was to assist the Mississippi Board of Animal Health with assessing and managing the growing number of displaced animals, they also had other duties. “The first thing we did was set up a temporary veterinary clinic for the dogs, cats, birds, pigs, goats, and other domestic animals that were arriving,” said Dr. Carla Huston, an associate professor at the MSU College of Veterinary Medicine and a member of the Mississippi Animal Response Team. “We also provided veterinary oversight at state shelters in both Jackson and Hattiesburg, assisted with animal and agricultural needs assessments in areas devastated by the storm, delivered supplies, and helped organize and credential volunteer veterinarians and technicians. Another

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part of our duties was to document monetary donations made to the state for the care of these animals.” And there were a lot—so many that the college, the Mississippi Board of Animal Health, and the Mississippi Veterinary Medical Association established the Mississippi Animal Disaster Relief Fund. In 2005, the fund provided money to help with boarding costs and medical care for animals injured in the storm. It also bought supplies, such as feed, temporary fencing, buckets, and water troughs, for families with animals whose property was damaged. The fund became a permanent account in 2006 and continues to meet the needs of Mississippians and their animals affected by floods, droughts, tornadoes, and other natural disasters, said Huston, who serves as co-chair of the MADRF committee with Mississippi’s state veterinarian Dr. Jim Watson. “We had a lot of donations from livestock and pet groups and continued to get donations even after Katrina needs had been

FOCUS Fund Continues Helping Animals met,” Watson said. “So we decided to make the fund permanent to help people with animals that are affected by all types of disasters in the state.” The fund committee, which consists of private and public veterinary professionals, has distributed more than $50,000 since 2006. This provided care for 618 individual animals and several livestock herds, emergency pet sheltering equipment for humane societies, and a training session for the Mississippi Animal Response Team and workers at humane societies that house animals during disasters. While most of the funds have been used to help individuals offset the expenses of treating an injured pet impacted by a disaster or boarding a pet when they are displaced from their homes, money from the fund can go to any disaster-related need. “The fund has been a good thing and very needed,”said Huston, who also serves as MSU Extension veterinarian. “Our basic goal is to help local communities protect animal health and welfare in the event of a disaster. This means funds also can be awarded to support local veterinary business continuity, prepare for animal care and sheltering, stockpile supplies, provide for emergency hay and feed needs, and train emergency responders.” Dr. Corey Jones received funds to help with expenses incurred by boarding dogs and cats at his Yazoo City veterinary clinic after floodwaters displaced the family pets in 2012. At the height of the disaster, Jones and his staff cared for an additional 90 animals, which required a separate boarding area and more supplies and labor than was needed for day-to-day clinic business. “I had just bought this practice when the flooding occurred,” Jones said. “The number of animals we boarded required me to hire extra help to feed and walk the animals and buy extra pet food and medical supplies. Many of the animals stayed for 2 to 3 months before they could return home. It was a hefty expense bill for a new clinic. “The money I received through the Mississippi Animal Disaster Relief Fund helped me tremendously. It didn’t take care of everything, but it helped. I very much appreciate it,” Jones said. The MADRF is a nonprofit entity that is funded completely by private donations. Individual Mississippi residents, animal shelters, veterinary clinics, farm entities, and state agencies that support emergency functions related to animals, agriculture, and natural resources are eligible to apply for funds. These funds can be used for veterinary care and boarding of animals, feed, repair of infrastructure, pet-related supplies, and emergency responder training. “We are always grateful for donations and accept them anytime,” Huston said. “Donations usually come in after a large disaster has occurred because disaster relief is not something people think about in their day-to-day lives. But funds are needed year-round. We’ve been fortunate enough to have groups like the Petal High School students do fundraisers for the fund. And most of that money raised went back into their own community when a tornado hit in their area in 2013.” For more information on MADRF and details about how to make donations and apply for funds, visit www.cvm.msstate.edu and search “MADRF.” By Susan Collins-Smith

Photo by Jim Lytle

Submitted photo

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JULY 2015

FOCUS Playground Project Restores Hope

Through the Mississippi Department of Human Services, the MSU Extension Service and Early Childhood Institute received more than $14.4 million to address the particular challenges of childcare providers. Dr. Louise Davis, director of Extension’s Early Years Network, worked with contractors, equipment suppliers, and caregivers to reestablish childcare services to pre-Hurricane Katrina levels.

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FOCUS “Norma was a godsend,” Barnett said. With so much loss after Hurricane Ka“She and Dr. Davis came down and put in trina, it would have been easy to overplayground equipment, and I had such a look some of the state’s most great response from that. The kids loved vulnerable residents: infants, toddlers, it. They brought toys and educational maand preschool children. Families needterials. They’ve really helped me.” ed to get back to work whenever posHayes worked with Barnett to implesible, but without someone to watch ment best practices and attend childcare their children, what could they do? training courses. Eventually, Lil’s Angels The storm devastated homes and became a licensed center. businesses, and, for a special set of en“When children leave me and go to trepreneurs, their homes were their school, the teachers say, ‘We know you’ve businesses. Across the 12 coastal counbeen with Mrs. Barnett,’ because they are ties most affected by the hurricane, ready for school,” Barnett said. early-care and education providers While the playgrounds were the most faced a daunting task: rebuilding their visible signs that life was returning to norhomes and in-home child-care businessmal, field technical assistants provided es as quickly as possible, so both they less obvious help. and their clients could get back to work. “We established long-lasting relationDr. Louise Davis, director of the ships with these childcare providers,” said Early Years Network, an Extension Kelly Carmody, now a project director for Service program, formed a team of exFamily, Friend, and Neighbor Care. “We perienced early-childhood education mentored them in best practices, helped professionals to work specifically with them replace educational resources, and in-home childcare providers. The Nurdemonstrated how to use those materials turing Homes Initiative team—now effectively to help young children learn at called Family, Friend, and Neighbor their developmental levels.” Care—spent months working with Carmody said the result was lifecontractors, equipment suppliers, and changing for the team and the clients caregivers to reestablish childcare servthey served. ices to pre-Hurricane Katrina levels. “When we talk about that period of “We assessed each business’s time, we remember the heat, the long needs to determine what type of playhours, and the numerous challenges that ground equipment was best suited to were simply part of the massive undertakthe ages of the children they served, ing required for everyone on the coast to and helped them design safe spaces rebuild,” she said. “But what stands out in for the children so devastated by the my mind even more are the tears we shed storm,” Davis said. “We made sure the as we partnered with dedicated educators fencing materials were appropriate, the play structures were installed corEarly Years Network field technical assistant Norma Hayes who have a passion to work with young (left) worked with Eloise Barnett (center) to get Lil’s Angels children, and we saw their excitement as rectly, and mulch was laid to provide Family Center in Hattiesburg up and running after Katrina. we made progress in rebuilding. the right amount of safe surfaces for Barnett’s sister, Patricia Hughes, also works at the center. “We didn’t just restore fences and play the playgrounds.” areas, we helped restore hope,” Carmody Davis said many of the licensed added. “A decade later, many of those providers are still in busichildcare centers on the coast were destroyed, which put an even ness and still call us to talk about our shared mission to provide greater burden on the existing in-home providers to expand their high-quality early-learning experiences for children.” services. The Early Years Network receives funding from the Missis“Parents were depending on in-home family childcare centers sippi Department of Human Services Division of Early Childhood to provide care for their children until the larger licensed centers Care and Development to provide early-care and education procould relocate to a temporary location or rebuild,” she explained. grams and materials for teachers, directors, children, and families Eloise Barnett has owned Lil’s Angels Family Center in Hatto improve the well-being of Mississippi’s youngest residents. tiesburg for 18 years. When Katrina hit, she cared for several children in her full-day and afterschool childcare programs. “Katrina ripped the roof off my house, and I had to close for By Keri Collins Lewis • Photos by Kevin Hudson 2 weeks because we didn’t have electricity,” Barnett said. Norma Hayes, a field technical assistant with the Early Years Network, worked with Barnett to get her business up and running again.

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JULY 2015

FOCUS Shrimp Business Bounces Back for Some

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rage said. A portion of the $9.2 billion settlement with BP was used in a marketing program to help elevate the status of Gulf seafood. Fuel costs for shrimpers has not been as high in recent years, which also helped the industry recover. “There has been a real push to market wild-caught Gulf shrimp as a premium product, compared to pond-raised foreign shrimp,” Burrage said. “Fuel costs have not gone up as much as some predicted, and, since the fishermen’s biggest operating expense is fuel, they’ve had lower operating costs, and they’re getting all-time record highs for their catch.” While survivors in the industry are reaping rewards, Burrage said he does not foresee a scenario in which the quantity of commercial fishing boats will reach pre-Katrina levels. The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council has capped the number of permits available. “There are more than 1,200 active vessels in the deepwater fishery,” he said. “Twice that many work on smaller boats. There hasn’t been any new entry into that fishery lately, and everybody’s slice of pie has been relatively the same. Just because things are looking good now doesn’t mean the council will open it up and let more boats participate. I think the fishermen who are there are happy with the way things are now.” Bosarge said that, since losing most of his equipment in the storm, he has stopped wholesaling his catch and begun concentrating more on production, a strategy that helped him adapt to the changing post-Katrina environment in his industry. “I purchased a repossessed boat from some people who didn’t make it,” he said. “I’m doing better now than I did pre-Katrina, but Katrina didn’t have anything to do with it. I just didn’t give up. I managed my business and happen to be doing better than I was.”

By Nathan Gregory

Photo by Russ Houston

Ten years after Hurricane Katrina left him with nothing but his three medium-sized refrigerator vessels, shrimper Steve Bosarge has overcome major tribulation to expand his business. Years before the catastrophe, Bosarge diversified his business because of increased shrimping competition. In the 1990s, he began providing endangered species animal relocation and site clearance services for oil companies. He had no way of knowing that this side work would save his business. He continues that service today, along with his original career. Many captains of smaller boats were not as fortunate. On opening day of shrimp season in 2006, 306 boats left port—fewer than half the number that launched the previous year. In 2013, 250 boats left port on opening day, and 368 launched in 2014. Although he faces less competition, Bosarge said the need to rebuild damaged infrastructure presented major obstacles after Katrina. Some people who had spent their entire careers in commercial fishing had to cut their losses and assess their options. “There were a lot of shrimp, but a lot of captains and crews lost their homes,” Bosarge said. “They were busy trying to put something together for their families. It was tough to shrimp because all the hardware stores we used got hit, so there was a lack of resources and sometimes you weren’t able to get what you needed.” Dr. Dave Burrage, Extension professor of marine resources with the Mississippi Coastal Research and Extension Center (CREC) in Biloxi, said the shrimping industry now is better for those who were not forced out after Katrina. Those who had the equipment needed to work soon after Katrina caught more shrimp, but there was no place to sell their catch because of the storm’s destruction. Burrage and MAFES researchers collected data to estimate damage that hurricanes Katrina and Rita inflicted on Mississippi’s commercial fishing industry. The commercial fishing fleet suffered more than $35 million in damages. The state’s 69 seafood-processing plants, 141 seafood dealers, and five land-based support facilities saw more than $100 million in damages. “The guys who were able to get out there and work right after the storm were catching tons of shrimp,” Burrage said. “If anything, the storm helped the resource a little bit. It was a record crop but a smaller number of people who could go get them. Katrina did nothing to hurt the crop. It hurt the fishermen.” Burrage said three factors allowed the industry to bounce back over time: crop failures in other countries, increased marketing of Gulf shrimp, and lower fuel costs. “If you look at seafood consumption in this country, shrimp is number one out of the top 10 and has been for about 5 years,” Burrage said. “There have been tremendous crop failures in some exporting countries like Thailand, China, and India due to disease. Demand never went away, but supply did. All of a sudden, the price of domestic shrimp went up.” While Mississippi still feels the impact of Katrina, the BP oil spill of 2010 had an even worse effect on the shrimp industry, Bur-

FOCUS Shrimp Business Bounces Back for Some

Crop failures in other countries, increased marketing of Gulf shrimp, and lower fuel costs allowed the shrimping industry to bounce back over time. Photo by Bob Ratliff

“There were a lot of shrimp, but a lot of captains and crews lost their homes. They were busy trying to put something together for their families. It was tough to shrimp because all the hardware stores we used got hit, so there was a lack of resources and sometimes you weren’t able to

鵻鵼 Steve Bosarge

Photo by Ben Posadas

get what you needed.” Hurricanes Katrina and Rita caused more than $35 million in damages to the state’s commercial fishing fleet. The state’s 69 seafood-processing plants, 141 seafood dealers, and five land-based support facilities saw more than $100 million in damages.

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JULY 2015

Pasture-Raised Pork

Growing in Popularity in Mississippi

Ross’s Palo Alto Farm near West Point is home to about 20 Idaho Pasture, Mangalitsa, and Kunekune pigs. He plans to have well over 200 pigs by the end of the year.

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“We provide plenty of feed, attenSpecialty markets in pork production are tion, and reinforcement. The pigs cropping up across the U.S. in response to feast on plenty of produce and are a growing interest in pasture-raised pigs. not given antibiotics.” Before the 1960s, most U.S. pork was Both men said starting this new raised in outside lots or on pasture sysventure has been challenging. One tems. Commercial pork production today challenge involved constructing generally relies on large, warehouse-like fencing for the hog pens. buildings or barns that house sows and “We tried hog wire, which didn’t pigs in stalls or pens. As many consumers work for us,” Blaylock said. “Pigs become more concerned about how their were able to push through the botfood is produced, outdoor production is tom. We built a trench, but baby becoming popular once again. According pigs were still able to escape.” to the USDA Economic Research Service, They successfully switched to the number of pigs raised in organic livehog panel and are planning to stock operations rose from 1,724 in 2000 to build posts out of cedar found on 12,373 in 2011. the property. Mississippi producers have entered “We were able to harvest the this market to satisfy growing demand. cedar from the land and are in the One local producer new to the market is process of building new pens,” Scott Ross, who attributed the demand for Blaylock said. “The fencing will pasture pork to an increasing number of blend well into the landscape, and consumers with a vested interest in how utilizing resources available onsite their food is produced. helped save cost while reducing “There are a growing number of peothe ecological impact.” ple who prefer pasture pork,” said Ross, Palo Alto has ambitions to beowner of Palo Alto Farm near West Point. come a leader in pasture-pork pro“These consumers want to know how the duction in the Southeast. Ross said hogs are raised and harvested.” Ross said he uses 50 acres of his 250- Scott Ross (right) talks with Clay County Extension agent BJ McClenton he wants to find an organic-certiacre farm to raise pasture pigs. Approxi- about his 50-acre pasture pig operation. Ross attributes the demand fied slaughterhouse because he is mately 20 pigs, including Idaho Pasture, for pasture pork to the growing number of consumers who want to considering certifying a portion of know how their food is produced. his operation as organic. Mangalitsa, and Kunekune breeds, now Dr. Mark Crenshaw, MSU Extension swine specialist, has spent graze on the property. Ross bought his first pig in May 2014 and said time with Ross and Blaylock as they developed their operation. He he hopes to have well over 200 by the end of 2015. Ross said he plans emphasized the importance of producers knowing their market beto raise pigs for breeding stock, as well as specialty markets that infore getting started in the business. clude a chain of regional restaurants, local consumers, and high-end “There is a demand for several specialty markets when it comes grocers and chefs. to pork,” Crenshaw said. “That might be a buyer who only wants “My father raised pigs when I was a little boy, and I’ve always to buy a pig that’s been raised outside. Sometimes it is a certain geloved them,” Ross said. “My family had this land available with netic breed, or the pig must be raised without the use of any antibiplenty of pasture, so pigs were a natural fit. otics. I caution anyone before they begin production to know their “While I know our primary breed will likely be Idaho Pasture market’s requirements. It’s important to know up front what you’ve pigs, I’d like to experiment with different breeds since we have plengot to meet.” ty of space,” he added. “We’ll evaluate growth rate, litter size, and Crenshaw also recommended that producers serve more than other qualities to see what is best suited for our particular target one specialty market. markets.” “If you are locked into just one market, and, for some reason Palo Alto Farm is animal-welfare rated, which is required in certhat market doesn’t need pigs when you have pigs ready to go, you tain markets, said Vaughn Blaylock, Palo Alto’s farm manager. don’t have a place to market those animals,” Crenshaw said. “One of the markets we are going after pays better if we are an“The most successful producers are strategic,” Crenshaw conimal-welfare approved,” Blaylock said. cluded. “They know their market, they follow a production schedGlobal Animal Partnership, an international nonprofit organiule, and they implement a well-thought-out plan when laying out zation, awards the designation, which recognizes the welfare practhe pasture. It takes a lot of work and preparation to be successful tices of producers who are certified by authorized, independent in the pork industry, and the successful producers are the ones who third parties. The program’s aim is to promote continuous improveare prepared.” ment, enable retailers to label products as animal-welfare rated, and provide insight for consumers into how the animals are raised. Blaylock said the farm opts for a more natural approach to meet By Vanessa Beeson • Photos by Kevin Hudson market needs. For example, the farm keeps birds, including chickens and guineas, to help destroy parasites. “We feed the pigs pumpkins, which serve as natural wormers and keep the stress level down to prevent illness,” Blaylock said.

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JULY 2015

Elton Coley

Dr. Glenn Thomas

MSU

Honors Four Division Alumni

Richard Flowers

Dr. Stephen King

MISSISSIPPI LANDMARKS

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Mississippi State University’s 2015 alumni-of-the-year group includes four representatives from the Division of Agriculture, Forestry, and Veterinary Medicine (DAFVM). Elton Coley, Richard “Dick” Flowers Sr., Dr. Stephen King, and Dr. Glenn Thomas were among nine alumni recognized during the MSU Alumni Association 2015 awards banquet. Each of MSU’s eight academic colleges honored graduates for professional and community achievements. DAFVM includes the College of Forest Resources, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and College of Veterinary Medicine. The College of Forest Resources selected Coley, who received a 1974 bachelor’s degree in forestry and a 1975 master’s in business administration. Coley, who resides in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, has been president of Forest Managers & Consultants since 1994 and principal of TMA Wood since 1995. Coley is a real estate broker and state-certified real estate appraiser in Mississippi, Alabama, and Tennessee and a registered forester in Mississippi and Alabama. Coley married his wife, Patricia, shortly after he graduated from MSU. The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences nominated Flowers, who graduated from MSU in 1956 with a bachelor’s degree in agriculture before moving to Tunica. He owns Flowers Foundation and is a part owner of Mattson Gin. He has a farming operation that extends into six counties in northwest Mississippi. Flowers was also part owner and organizer of Mississippi Seed and Sure-Grow Seed, which later merged into Delta & Pine Land Company. He serves as commissioner for the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality and the Yazoo-Mississippi Delta Joint Water Management District. He and his wife, Janet, have three children and seven grandchildren. King and Thomas, who were nominated by the College of Veterinary Medicine, opened their clinic, Tupelo Small Animal Hospital, in 1994. King received a DVM from MSU in 1988. Before starting Tupelo Small Animal Hospital with Thomas, King practiced in North Carolina and his hometown of Memphis, Tennessee. He specializes in internal medicine, orthopedic surgery, and practice management. A chairman of the Mississippi Veterinary Medical Association (MVMA) Program Committee, King has also been an MVMA district representative and member of the CVM Shelter Medicine Advisory Board. He currently serves on the Tupelo-Lee Humane Shelter Board. King and his wife, Mary, have three children. A native of Tupelo, Thomas also earned his DVM from MSU in 1988. His specialties are pediatrics, behavior, general surgery, and oncology. He supports several nonprofit philanthropies in Tupelo. He has participated in a clean water and medical mission to Guatemala for the past 6 years with his church. He has three children with his wife, Mary. DAFVM Vice President Gregory Bohach said the recognition the four honorees received was well deserved. “We in the division are very proud of these alumni and the contributions they have made to their professions and society,” Bohach said. “They are excellent role models for demonstrating how an education from one of our colleges can help prepare one for an outstanding and productive career.”

By Nathan Gregory

1/82: Hancock County Hancock County Office, MSU Extension Service 856 Highway 90, Suite B Bay Saint Louis, MS 39520 Phone: (228) 467-5456

Photo by Kevin Hudson

The famous Angel Tree in Bay Saint Louis draws visitors to take photos with the sculpture. Hurricane Katrina killed this and many other trees, but Indiana chainsaw wood sculptor Dayle K. Lewis transformed them into angel creations. The Angel Tree saved the lives of three people and one dog, who climbed the tree and used it as a refuge for 4 hours as the hurricane raged on.

County seat:

Bay Saint Louis

Population:

45,556

Municipalities:

Waveland, Diamondhead, Kiln, Pearlington

Commodities:

forestry, vegetables, soybeans, blueberries, cattle

Industries:

Silver Slipper Casino, Hollywood Casino, Calgon Carbon, SNK Polychemie, PSL North America, Rolls-Royce, SABIC, Solvay

Natural resources:

Hancock County has excellent water resources and opportunities for hunting and fishing.

History notes:

The Bay of Saint Louis was first explored on August 25, 1699. The ship’s carpenter, Penicault, recorded in his journal, “We shortly afterwards found a beautiful bay, about one league in width, by four in circumference, which M. Bienville named the Bay of St. Louis, because it was the feast day of St. Louis we arrived there. We hunted there three days and killed fifty deer.” In December of that year, Sieur de Bienville had a fort constructed on the bluff of the bay and garrisoned it with 15 soldiers and five families. The colony at Bay Saint Louis became the third settlement on the Gulf of Mexico, after Pensacola and Biloxi.

Attractions:

McLeod Park, Buccaneer State Park

Did you know?

Hancock County has a thriving art community. During warm weather, the Second Saturday Art Walk in Old Town Bay Saint Louis offers live music, art openings, and special offers from businesses. Also, Hancock County has produced many outstanding college and professional athletes, including Brett Favre, all-star football player, University of Southern Mississippi (USM) and the Green Bay Packers; Wendell Ladner, all-star basketball player, USM and the New York Nets; Leland Mitchell, all-star basketball player, MSU and the New Orleans Buccaneers; and Jacob Lindgren, all-star baseball player, MSU and the New York Yankees.

“Alongside abundant opportunities to enjoy diverse natural resources, Hancock County hosts a wonderful and resilient art and cultural community.” Christian Stephenson, MSU Extension County Coordinator

Editor’s note: 1/82 is a regular feature highlighting one of Mississippi’s 82 counties.

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JULY 2015

NEWSNotes The Weed Science Society of America presented Dr. David Shaw, MSU vice president for research and economic development, with its 2015 Public Service Award for his leadership on the issue of herbicide resistance. The Giles Distinguished Professor of Plant and Soil Sciences has participated in the largest long-term field project on glyphosate-resistance management ever established.

Dr. David Shaw

Dr. Lanny Pace, executive director of the MSU Veterinary Research and Diagnostic Laboratory System, recently received the National Institute for Animal Agriculture’s Advocate for Animal Agriculture Award for his dedication to animal agriculture, specifically for involving the organization in aquaculture. Because of Pace’s efforts, the institute incorporated aquaculture into the regular agendas for its annual conferences and established a National Roundtable for Sustainable Aquaculture.

Dr. Lanny Pace

Julie White, an Extension associate in the School of Human Sciences, recently became the first Mississippi participant in the American Farm Bureau Federation’s prestigious 2-year Partners in Agricultural Leadership class. Only 10 people throughout the U.S. are selected for the intensive program designed to enhance leadership skills and agricultural advocacy roles.

Julie White

Dr. Dan Reynolds has been selected to hold the Edgar E. and Winifred B. Hartwig Endowed Chair in Soybean Agronomy in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Reynolds, a MAFES cropping systems researcher and Extension agronomy specialist, will focus primarily on weed science and agronomy in his research. Dr. Dan Reynolds

Dr. Richard Hopper, a professor in the College of Veterinary Medicine Department of Pathobiology and Population Medicine, is lead author and editor-in-chief of Bovine Reproduction, a comprehensive reference book. Hopper is section leader for the CVM

Dr. Richard Hopper

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Theriogenology, Ambulatory, and Food Animal Medicine Service. The book provides information on all aspects of reproduction in bulls and cows. The MSU College of Forest Resources was designated the 2014 Conservationist of the Year by the Mississippi Wildlife Federation. These awards are among the most prestigious for conservation efforts. The only nationally accredited 4-year natural resources degree program in the state, the College of Forest Resources has graduated more than 4,000 students in its 60-year history. After decades of service to Mississippi State University, long-time scientist and administrator Dr. Joe Street retired April 30. Dr. Steve Martin will serve as interim associate director for agriculture and natural resources while a national search for Street’s successor is conducted. MSU’s College of Veterinary Medicine continues to hold accreditation from the American Veterinary Medical Association Council on Education. One of 28 veterinary colleges in the United States, CVM recently received the good news from the only agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and nonprofit Council for Higher Education Accreditation to certify higher education training in the veterinary profession. The council uses 11 standards to evaluate programs, and it assesses a college’s commitment and success in carrying out its animal-care missions. Adam Rohnke, a wildlife and fisheries Extension associate at the Central Mississippi Research and Extension Center, and Angel Rohnke, associate director of the Museum of Natural Science (Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Aquaculture), were awarded the 2015 Outstanding Conservation Alumni Achievement Award from Finger Lakes Community College for their work in Mississippi and other states.

Dr. Joe Street

Adam Rohnke

Cobie Rutherford

Dr. David Buys

Cobie Rutherford, the new Extension beef cattle associate, plans to deliver educational programs to producers and students across the state. Rutherford received his bachelor’s degree in animal science in 2006 and his master’s degree in breeding and genetics in 2010, both from Auburn University. He previously worked for the Alabama Cattlemen’s Association as director of industry relations and youth programs. The Association of Natural Resource Extension Professionals granted a silver award to a team of MSU Extension professionals in the Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Aquaculture for their news column series, Extension Outdoors. This weekly column is designed to share seasonal educational information about Mississippi’s natural resources and related experiences. Extension state health specialist Dr. David Buys will serve as the chair of the chronic disease prevention and management action team for a larger, nationwide effort by the Extension Service and its partners to improve health factors in the U.S. Over a 3year period, Buys will lead a team tasked with identifying research-based programs and curricula, identifying gaps in the materials available, developing at least one new program, training Extension agents to use the programs, and launching the program nationally. Dr. Normie Buehring and Dr. Christian Baldwin, faculty members in the Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, were awarded for research and teaching, respectively, by the Southern Branch of the American Society of Agronomy. Buehring received the Career Award in Research for his work in agricultural production systems in north Mississippi. The MAFES scientist is stationed at the Northeast Mississippi Research and Extension Center in Verona. Baldwin received the Early-Career Award in Teaching. Baldwin teaches turf grass science in the university’s College of Agricul-

ture and Life Sciences. Four Mississippi State agronomy students received awards for their oral and poster presentations: Jesse Morrison (first, oral presentation), Chathurika Wijewardana (third, oral presentation), Firas Alsajri (second, poster), and Ethan Norvell (third, poster). Jonathan D. “Johnny” Richwine, a CALS student pursuing a master’s degree in agronomy, recently took first-place honors in the Emerging Scientist Competition of the American Forage and Grassland Council. Richwine’s academic emphasis is native grasses and biofuels, and his oral presentation focused on Southeastern wildrye, a cool-season native grass. MSU agronomy doctoral student Chase Samples and agronomy master’s student Andrew Denton placed highly in the 2015 Beltwide Cotton Conference’s visual display competition. Samples won first place in the agronomy and physiology category, and Denton placed second in the weed science category. Drake Copeland placed first in the Master of Science category of the inaugural student poster contest at the Weed Science Society of America’s annual meeting. He won for his poster on the evaluation of preemergence herbicides and insecticidal seed treatments on thrips infestation in cotton. Garrett Montgomery and Andrew Denton were honored at the Southern Weed Science Society of America’s annual meeting. Montgomery won the outstanding master’s student award, and Denton placed second in the master’s poster contest.

Dr. Normie Buehring

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JULY 2015

DEVELOPMENTCORNER Hawks Creates Endowment

Submitted photo

for Precision Agriculture

Today’s world revolves around technology. Modern advancements and innovations have become perpetual staples, heightening expectations and transforming daily life. Many people look to the growing corporate sector for progress, while others, like Diane Hawks, realize that no industry is better positioned for impacting the future than agriculture. As the global population continues to grow, new methods of agricultural sustainability and production are needed to feed and fuel Diane Hawks the world. Hawks, a 1980 graduate of the University of Mississippi, established an endowment at Mississippi State to support education in precision agriculture, a farm management concept that uses advanced technology to optimize field-level operations to more closely match inputs to crop needs, reduce the environmental impact of agriculture, and boost competitiveness through more efficient practices. Driven by the latest equipment and remote-sensing satellite technology, the highly detailed practice helps farmers to more easily identify issues and develop the best “prescriptions” for their fields. These capabilities are instrumental in delivering more consistency to an extremely volatile industry that sustains a growing world. As a premier land-grant institution, Mississippi State is proactive in research, education, and outreach related to newly emerging agricultural technologies. The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) currently offers a precision-agriculture emphasis in the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering. In the upcoming academic year, a full precision-agriculture certificate program will be added, pending approval by the faculty. “Through this program, students will garner a well-rounded capacity for understanding precision agriculture as it applies to their major and across the entire agricultural landscape,” said Dr. Scott Willard, associate dean of CALS.

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The Diane Hawks Precision Agriculture Curriculum Endowment will help establish the certificate program. Hawks was raised on a farm in rural DeSoto County and continued working in agriculture into her adult life before pursuing an influential career in the political sector. Even after leaving the farm, her passion for advocacy in agriculture was evident through her professional and civic involvement in leading and serving the industry. “My heart has always been in agriculture,” Hawks said. “I was raised on a farm, and I raised my children on a farm. I will do anything I can to promote agriculture for the next generations.” Currently under development, the MSU precision-agriculture certificate program is a collaboration of four CALS departments: Agricultural and Biological Engineering; Plant and Soil Sciences; Agricultural Economics; and Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Entomology, and Plant Pathology. The collaborative effort also involves the MSU Extension Service, Bagley College of Engineering, Geosystems Research Institute, and stakeholders from various industries. The coalesced curriculum will demonstrate the multifaceted interactions of precision agriculture. Students will participate in field research programs to better understand the evolving area, as well as its related environmental factors, crop inputs, equipment, and information technology software and hardware. “We have tremendous support to develop this precision-agriculture and decision analytics focus, in addition to enhancing our already successful agricultural engineering degree program and precision-agriculture concentration,” said CALS Dean George Hopper. Nearly 25 years ago, during her time on the farm, Hawks participated in some of the early development and implementation processes of precision agriculture. She recalls the first laptop she ever owned, which spent most of its time with her in the cab of a combine. When Mississippi State presented the idea of a precision-agriculture program, she knew she wanted to be involved. “The greatest gift anyone can give to someone, besides spiritual guidance, is an education,” Hawks said. “By giving people behind us the tools to better equip and feed the world, we are raising the standard of living for society as a whole. It’s a ripple effect that is all positive.”

Research efforts from land-grant institutions like MSU lay the foundations that power solutions for mounting demands. However, the reach of the globalized progress afforded by these institutions would be far less significant without the support of people such as Hawks, who understand the role agriculture can play in meeting the world’s future needs.

By Addie Mayfield

Philanthropy at Work 鵻鵼 Private gifts can help the precision-agriculture program at Mississippi State University flourish. Ongoing support for the program comes from Monsanto, which has gifted a significant amount to advance precision agriculture at the university. The partnership between Monsanto and MSU will provide insight on the interactions and relationships of the environment, crop inputs, equipment, and data analysis in order to confront the food-security challenges of an expanding global population. The Monsanto gift will help MSU prepare students to become leaders in precision agriculture.

For More Information 鵻鵼 Jud Skelton College of Agriculture and Life Sciences/Real Estate Giving (662) 325-0643 jskelton@foundation.msstate.edu http://www.cals.msstate.edu/ Charlie Weatherly Director of Development Emeritus for Agriculture, Forestry, and Veterinary Medicine (662) 325-3471 cweatherly@foundation.msstate.edu http://www.cals.msstate.edu/ Jeff Little College of Forest Resources and The Bulldog Forest (662) 325-8151 jlittle@foundation.msstate.edu http://www.cfr.msstate.edu/ Jimmy Kight College of Veterinary Medicine (662) 325-3815 jkight@foundation.msstate.edu http://www.cvm.msstate.edu

The gift also funds annual scholarships, which are crucial in attracting the best and brightest to work in precision agriculture. Alumni and friends may join Monsanto and Diane Hawks to further the precision-agriculture focus. Interested contributors may contact Jud Skelton in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. 31

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JULY 2015

Nonprofit Organization U.S. Postage PAID Tupelo, MS Permit No. 290

Box 9625 Mississippi State, MS 39762

Imported fire ants are a scourge across the Southeast, but a two-pronged attack can control their numbers. Bite back by broadcasting insecticide bait three times a year, and treat mounds when they appear. For more information, see http://msucares.com/biteback. (Photo by Kat Lawrence)