(Distributed March 2004) March 23, the fourth Tuesday in March, is the American Diabetes Association "Alert" to locate the millions of Americans with undiagnosed diabetes. The Alert is an annual, one-day call-to-action for people to find out if they are at risk for diabetes, according to LSU AgCenter nutritionist Dr. Beth Reames.

(Distributed March 2004) Two of the most frequently asked questions by parents when visiting child-care programs are "What type of training does your staff participate in?" and "What educational backgrounds do your staff members have?"

(Distributed March 2004) Studies show children are better adjusted, do better in school, learn more and show the most improvement when members of their families are involved in their children’s early education.

(Distributed March 2004) March is a critical month in our vegetable gardens - early for some things and late for others. Timely planting is one way of increasing potential yield and decreasing production problems, says LSU Agricultural Center horticulturist Dr. Tom Koske.

(Distributed March 2004) With the arrival of March and April, we are squarely in the middle of the spring bedding plant season. Warm-season bedding plants make a great addition to Louisiana landscapes, says LSU AgCenter horticulturist Dr. Allen Owings.

(Distributed March 2004) Lawn grasses are now showing spring re-growth across much of the state, but LSU AgCenter horticulturist Dr. Tom Koske warns against rushing out and applying fertilizers that will cause too much very early growth.

(Distributed March 2004) A recent LSU AgCenter survey of Louisiana home vegetable garden shows a "diamond in the rough," claims LSU AgCenter horticulturist Dr. Tom Koske. The survey estimates that the state had 394,877 home gardens in 2003.

(Distributed March 2004) One of the most challenging problems in home landscapes is controlling weeds in ornamental beds, says LSU AgCenter horticulturist Dr. Allen Owings. Start controlling them in early spring.

(Distributed March 2004) If you overseeded your lawn or athletic fields last fall, you should help your turf out of that "fix," says LSU Agricultural Center horticulturist Dr. Tom Koske. The warm-season grass will be trying to re-establish itself as the cool-season, overseeded grass grows strong.

(Distributed March 2004) For many families, the arrival of a sizable tax refund check is the financial event of the year. "By carefully planning ahead, you can make that refund check bring you closer to your important goals," says LSU AgCenter family economics professor Dr. Jeanette Tucker.