| Sweet Potato, IP Experts Added to Staff During this time of financial emergency for the LSU AgCenter, it has been difficult to add new staff. But, fortunately, two key positionswere filled that have major implications for Louisiana’s economic development. |
| [Image: group photo]13 Farmers Attain Elite ‘Master’ Status Thirteen of Louisiana’s finest farmers have completed the rigorous requirements to become a Master Farmer – a title that means they have not only learned the latest in scientifically based conservation techniques but they are voluntarily implementing them on their farms. |
| [Image: cover]Louisiana Agriculture Magazine Summer 2006 PDF of Louisiana Agriculture Magazine Summer 2006 |
| [Image: Michael Salassi]Louisiana Agriculture: Economically Viable Through Effective Research Despite its relatively small size compared to many other states, Louisiana produces a wide and diverse array of agricultural products. Agriculture is big business and a major contributor to the state and many local economies. Sales of agricultural products provide income to thousands of farm families across the state. |
| [Image: katrina]Hurricanes and Louisiana Agriculture Katrina and Rita – names that will live forever – remain a part of the South Louisiana dialog and a pair of storms that will undoubtedly reshape the way Louisiana residents think about tropicalweather. Virtually every aspect of community and business life across the Bayou State continues to display a direct effect from these catastrophes, and their signatures of destruction remain plainly evident in the agriculture and forestry sectors as well. |
| Leaders Become Informed Voice for Louisiana Agriculture What is leadership? For many people, it is a difficult concept to understand because it is intangible. Even if most people would find it difficult to define leadership, they are likely to know a good leader when they see one. |
| Red-banded Stink Bugs Trouble Louisiana Because soybeans are planted earlier in Louisiana, different insect species are becoming problematic. One of most concern is the red-banded stink bug. |
| [Image: Interview]Unraveling Mystery Malady in South Louisiana Rice For more than 10 years, rice producers in southwestern Louisiana have occasionally encountered a mysterious disorder in their crops. LSU AgCenter researchers have methodically worked to unravel the "mystery" and help farmers deal with this problem. |
| [Image: P. Roy Vidrine addressing participants at the annual field day]Versatility of Valor Herbicide in Cotton and Soybeans With weeds being a major pest in production agriculture, most growers have come to rely on herbicides to prevent negative effects on yield. Producers may choose from many herbicides, depending on the crop they are growing and the weed species affecting the crop. |
| [Image: cotton boll]New Weed Control Technology for Cotton Since the release of the first generationof Roundup Ready cotton in 1995, U.S. cotton producers have shown a willingness to adopt this new technology. |
| [Image: Sealed entrance of a crawfish burrow]Crawfish Burrows and Drought Crawfish yields for the 2005-2006 production season were abnormallylow. This is especially true for those using the production strategy of culturing crawfish following rice in a field rotation. Prolonged summer drought when crawfish are confined to burrows, where they reproduce, can hamper reproduction if residual water within the burrows is lacking. |
| [Image: Sweet Potatoes]Effect of Herbicide Regimes on Weed Density and Yield in Sweet Potato In 2005, Louisiana producers harvested more than 16,000 acres of sweet potatoes with a total value exceeding $90 million. Research suggests that the majority of yield loss in the Beauregard sweet potato is caused by weed interference during the first two to eight weeks after transplant. |
| [Image: Cotton weeds were planted approximately 2 inches beside soybeans]When Crops Become Weeds: Competitive Potential of Volunteer Roundup Ready Cotton and Soybean Roundup Ready cropping systems, which feature plant varieties genetically enhanced to withstand application of glyphosate herbicide with minimal to no adverse effect on the crop, have proven to be effective and cost-efficient for managing weeds in cotton and soybean. |
| [Image: Yan Chen talking about research]Hammond Research Station Shows Off Latest in Landscaping The Hammond Research Station, just outside Hammond, La., has been undergoing a transformation to provide more research and education for the green service industry. |
| [Image: Kenneth Gravois]L 99-226 and L 99-233: Two New Sugarcane Varieties for Louisiana’s Sugar Industry On April 25, 2006, the LSU AgCenter released two new sugarcane varieties, L 99-226 and L 99-233, in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agriculture Research Service Sugarcane Research Laboratory in Houma and the American Sugar Cane League. |
| [Image: Ken Damann]Crop Research Featured at Northeast Field Day Nearly 200 farmers and other agricultural industry representatives attended the annual field day at the Northeast Research Station in St. Joseph, La., on June 14, 2006. The half-day program featured stops at 10 field locations where LSU AgCenter scientists explained their research with row crops. |
| [Image: redvine]Long-term Management of Perennial Weeds Starts in the Fall Perennial weeds such as alligatorweed and redvine are becoming more difficult to control as producers adopt conservation tillage practices. |
| 1 2 |