(Distributed 06/19/08) A new bug has joined the population of pests in Louisiana that can potentially destroy an agricultural crop. It’s the Asian citrus psyllid and its target is any kind of citrus tree. Smaller than the capital A on this page and mottled brown in color, the psyllid sucks the sap out of the leaves, resulting in curling. Sooty mold will develop on the leaves from the honeydew produced by the psyllid.

(Distributed 06/19/08) The Louisiana 4-H Museum is seeking items for its collection to show the history of 4-H – the state’s largest and long-running youth development program. The museum is calling for photos, ribbons, certificates, trophies, documents, handcrafted projects, demonstration materials, record books and more to be used in exhibits, traveling displays, presentations and archives.

(Distributed 06/25/08) The peak of the Louisiana peach season runs from mid-June until mid-July. Don’t miss out on this healthful window of opportunity, advises LSU AgCenter nutritionist Dr. Beth Reames.

(Distributed 06/25/08) It's time to enjoy Louisiana blueberries. Luckily, blueberries are nature's No. 1 source of antioxidants among more than 50 fresh fruits and vegetables tested by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging.

(Distributed 06/04/08) RUSTON – The red flags of predatory loans were explained to the public at a Dollar Defense workshop presented by the LSU AgCenter May 29.

(Distributed 06/02/08) Faculty and students from two LSU System campuses combined their talents and expertise to produce a state-of-the-art weather station that could be rolled into the path of a hurricane if one comes our way. A cooperative venture of faculty in the LSU Hurricane Center and the LSU AgCenter, along with LSU mechanical engineering students, the station is designed to help monitor the intensity of storms as they approach the Louisiana coast.

(Distributed 06/10/08) Young people from across Louisiana will compete in the 39th annual Louisiana 4-H and FFA State Horse Show July 8-12 in West Monroe.

(Distributed 06/09/08) The Louisiana Forest Products Development Center, a unit of the LSU AgCenter, will conduct a comprehensive three-day lumber drying workshop on July 23-25 on the LSU campus in Baton Rouge.

(Distributed 06/09/08) As more than 3 billion quart-size, high-density polyethylene motor-oil containers head for U.S. landfills each year, LSU AgCenter researchers are looking for ways to keep them out.

(Distributed 06/05/08) More than 200 people who wanted to learn how to make biodiesel in small batches packed the meeting room at the LSU AgCenter’s W.A. Callegari Environmental Center in Baton Rouge on June 3-5.

(Distributed 06/05/08) Louisiana high school teachers who want to learn how to teach their students about money management will have opportunities from the LSU AgCenter. The free workshops are open to the public as well.

(Distributed 06/04/08) The LSU AgCenter’s annual field day and open house at its Red River Research Station will be held June 18 at the station in Bossier City.

(Distributed 06/04/08) The Louisiana Forest Products Development Center, a unit of the LSU AgCenter, will present a workshop on practical wood identification on July 9 on the campus of Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, La.

(Distributed 06/02/08) Using sweet sorghum and sugarcane as biofuels has generated significant interest among members of the Louisiana sugarcane industry.

(Distributed 06/30/08) The LSU AgCenter was one of 25 universities selected to participate in the Biomass and Energy Awareness Days (BEAD II) EXPO in Washington, D.C., June 22. The AgCenter’s exhibit featured the research being conducted at the Audubon Sugar Institute to produce bioethanol and biodiesel from sugarcane and algae.

(Distributed 06/30/08) Participants in the LSU AgCenter’s Agricultural Leadership Development Program visited Washington, D.C., in mid-June as part of the two-year study program. Briefings on agricultural issues and visits with Louisiana’s legislative delegation were some of the highlights of the June 10-14 study tour to Washington, D.C., for this 11th class to participate in the program coordinated by the LSU AgCenter.

(Distributed 06/27/08) A home is the largest and most important purchase most people make. To help homeowners make the most of that investment while also doing their part for the environment and future generations, the LSU AgCenter and its partners have developed the Louisiana House Home and Landscape Resource Center. Known as LaHouse, for short, the completed center will open for a Preview Open House throughout the day July 15.

(Distributed 06/26/08) A study on the heating of tomato plants grown in greenhouses by an LSU AgCenter scientist is the cover story of the April-June 2008 issue of HortTechnology, a research publication of the American Society for Horticultural Science that has subscribers in 50 countries. Dr. H.Y. Hanna, a professor at the Red River Research Station in Bossier City, conducts research on growing greenhouse tomatoes as productively and efficiently as possible.

(Distributed 06/19/08) Winners of 4-H scholarships were among those honored during ceremonies at the LSU AgCenter’s 4-H University July 17-20. The young adults from across Louisiana were credited with excelling in project work and recordkeeping, serving as club officers or otherwise distinguishing themselves during their years in 4-H.

(Distributed 06/20/08) CROWLEY – Rice researchers will share details of their ongoing work during the LSU AgCenter Rice Research Station Field Day on July 2. "This is an excellent chance for farmers to talk with scientists about research and to find out about potential varieties and potential new production practices that are being studied," said Dr. Steve Linscombe, station director.

(Distributed 06/19/08) Louisiana youth took home honors as state contest winners and alternates as the LSU AgCenter’s 4-H U concluded Thursday night (June 19) on the LSU campus.

(Distributed 06/19/08) Ten adults were recognized for their contributions to the Louisiana 4-H program during an awards banquet and other ceremonies this week as part of the LSU AgCenter’s 4-H University program on the LSU campus in Baton Rouge. The honorees included four 4-H alumni who continue to show active support of the youth development program, two school superintendents, two professors on the LSU AgCenter faculty and two secretaries from LSU AgCenter offices.

(Distributed 06/19/08) LSU AgCenter faculty members and administrators were among those honored by an international communicators group last week during its annual meeting in Traverse City, Mich.

(Distributed 06/17/08) An innovative LSU AgCenter program is helping people in several Shreveport neighborhoods grow their own vegetables.

(Distributed 06/18/08) Pecan growers from as far as Georgia gathered at the LSU AgCenter’s Pecan Research Station here June 13 to hear the latest information on insects and diseases.

(Distributed 06/18/08) The Durand rice and crawfish farm in St. Martin Parish has realized considerable savings by converting diesel pumps to electric units.

(Distributed 06/18/08) Landscape professionals and consumers alike received valuable information at the LSU AgCenter’s Hammond Research Station’s second annual landscape horticulture field day on June 11.

(Distributed 06/17/08) The LSU AgCenter has conducted a considerable amount of evaluation research on crape myrtles over the last 10-plus years, according to LSU AgCenter horticulturist Dr. Allen Owings. “Probably 40-50 varieties are worthy of being grown and sold in Louisiana,” Owing says.

(Distributed 06/17/08) New research has found a link between eating fruits and vegetables and preserving muscle mass in older men and women, according to a study funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS).

(Distributed 06/13/08) Milk prices have moderated from unprecedented highs of 2007, an LSU AgCenter dairy specialist told farmers at a dairy field day June 12.

(Distributed 06/11/08) The recent salmonellosis food-borne illness outbreak associated with certain types of raw red tomatoes puts the spotlight on the importance of food safety, according to Dr. Beth Reames, LSU AgCenter nutritionist. Louisiana-grown tomatoes are on the approved safe to buy and eat list.

(Distributed 06/11/08) About 2 million American men have osteoporosis, and another 12 million are at risk for this disease, reports LSU AgCenter nutritionist Dr. Beth Reames. “Father’s Day is a good time to focus on men’s health,” Reames said. “And osteoporosis in men remains underdiagnosed and underreported. Although many people think of osteoporosis as a woman’s disease, it is also a serious health problem for men.”

(Distributed 06/11/08) The LSU AgCenter’s Northeast Research Station annual field day will be June 24 at the station in St. Joseph. Registration begins at 7:30 a.m., with the program starting at 8 a.m. The event will highlight agronomic and pest management research with cotton, soybean, corn and rice on Sharkey clay and silt loam soils.

(Distributed 06/11/08) The Louisiana County Agricultural Agents Association honored several LSU AgCenter agents and specialists during its annual conference June 1-4 in Baton Rouge. Top honors presented included distinguished service awards to Boyd Padgett, plant pathologist at the Macon Ridge Research Station in Winnsboro; Richard Letlow, extension agent in Morehouse Parish; and Shaney Hill, extension agent in Terrebonne Parish.