Richard L. Parish
Before hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the Citrus Research Station in Port Sulphur was devoted primarily to research on citrus – mainly Satsuma mandarin and navel oranges – with some limited work on commercial vegetables, other fruits and termites. The station was almost completely destroyed by the hurricanes. Most of the buildings were destroyed, and the rest were heavily damaged. Many of the citrus trees died. The major activity at the station since the hurricanes has been rebuilding the infrastructure so productive research can once again be conducted. The station has now been renamed the Coastal Area Research Station to better reflect the expanded research emphasis planned.
The primary research envisioned for the station is developing and evaluating salt-tolerant coastal plants. These plants have been demonstrated to be capable of growing in brackish water and are quite effective at stabilizing eroding shorelines and marsh areas. Although coastal stabilization has long been recognized as important to Louisiana, the 2005 hurricanes revived interest in and support for research on coastal plants. The LSU AgCenter has been working with salt-tolerant coastal plants for more than 20 years at other sites, but the Coastal Area Research Station is an excellent site to expand this work. The ground is low (elevation of about 0.0-2.0 feet above sea level), the soil has high salt content, and water from the Mississippi River is readily available for irrigation and for filling ponds. Plans are complete for a series of eight ponds, totaling five acres of water area. These ponds are being constructed by station staff using station equipment. Elevated artificial sand dunes, a shade house and a can yard to support expanded work in coastal plants are planned.
Research on Formosan subterranean termites was under way at the station before the 2005 hurricanes and has been expanded since. This station provides an excellent site for this research since the station was already infested with Formosan termites and is isolated. Citrus work will continue at the Coastal Area Research Station but on a smaller scale. The first project proposed is a study of subsurface drainage to reduce the water table and reduce the salt content in the soil under rows of citrus trees. The drainage work may be complemented by flushing and leaching with either fresh water or river water.
The station also will continue to support research projects initiated by other faculty from the LSU AgCenter. Research in 2006 included soybean sentinel plots to detect Asian soybean rust and a trial of ornamental sweet potatoes.
The specific emphasis of the Coastal Area Research Station may be changing, but the goal of providing useful research information to the people of Louisiana and specifically to Plaquemines Parish and other coastal areas remains the same.
Richard L. Parish, Resident Coordinator, Coastal Area Research Station, LSU AgCenter, Port Sulphur, La.
(This article was published in the spring 2007 issue of Louisiana Agriculture.) |