For many 4-H’ers, coming to LSU to compete in a contest, attend an educational program or run for a statewide office is one of the highlights of their 4-H experience. And for many, this year did not disappoint.
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For the 115th year, farmers gathered June 25 for the LSU AgCenter’s annual rice field day, where they heard updates on researchers’ efforts to breed higher-yielding varieties, develop pest management strategies and encourage beneficial agronomic practices.
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It can be harvested up to 30 days sooner than other sweet potatoes. It is a high yielder and tastes great, though its skin is a shade lighter than the sweet potatoes many Louisianans are accustomed to.
It’s the LSU AgCenter’s newest sweet potato variety, Avoyelles — named for the parish where scientists initially saw its potential and a parish that has played a central role in the state’s sweet potato industry for decades.
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Potassium deficiency symptoms in soybean first appear as irregular yellowing on the edges of K-deficient leaves, typically manifesting as early as the V3 vegetative stage (three trifoliolate leaves), primarily on the lower older leaves (Figure 1). In severe K-deficient soils, symptoms often appear on the upper younger leaves during the reproductive stages (Figure 2). Early-season K deficiency symptoms are relatively easy to diagnose and manage. However, many soybean fields experience K deficiency and consequent yield losses without displaying visible symptoms until the later reproductive growth stages (beginning seed, R5 to full-seed, R6).
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Louisiana is one of the most vulnerable U.S. states to extreme weather events due to its high frequency of natural disasters. Of these disasters, drought is the most expensive risk to Louisiana agriculture, accounting for 95% of projected crop losses by 2050.
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The Louisiana climate is heavily influenced by the Gulf of Mexico and the subtropical climate that we share with the four other Gulf Coast states. Of those Gulf Coast states, we are on average the wettest. That rain is a big component of why we call Louisiana Sportsman's Paradise, and the abundance of water that creates a green environment is a monster contributor to Louisiana agriculture.
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Over the next two years, young people in northeastern Louisiana will be introduced to swimming, bird-watching, fishing and other activities through a series of LSU AgCenter events and clinics designed to improve access to the outdoors.
The programs will include birding and fishing clinics and water activity days at lakes in the region that will introduce children and teens to activities and help them learn the best places to take part in outdoor recreation in northeastern Louisiana.
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The 2024/25 U.S. corn outlook is unchanged relative to last month. The season average price received by producers remains at $4.40 per bushel. USDA will release its Acreage report on June 28, which will provide survey-based indications of planted and harvested area.
The 2024/25 outlook for U.S. soybeans includes higher beginning and ending stocks. Higher beginning stocks reflect reduced crush for 2023/24, down 10 million bushels on lower soybean meal domestic use that is partly offset by higher exports.
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They love the adventure and the atypical day. Field trips are a fun and casual way to learn new things and create core memories. We’ve decided this will be the summer of field trips for the Career Center. We need to get out, see the awesome things happening around campus, and have a little fun as a team.
First up – The Dairy Store.
The LSU Dairy Store has been around for a LONG time but just got a glow-up with a new facility in the Spring. It’s no secret the ice cream is delicious, but we had no idea how big of an operation this was.
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At first glance, it would be difficult to tell much of a difference between the rice fields sitting on either side of a dirt road running through Wyatt Hardee’s farm near Kaplan.
But as attendees of a recent field day heard while touring the farm with Hardee and a team of LSU AgCenter researchers, the two rice fields have been subjected to vastly different production methods.
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While there are more than 60 species of mosquitoes in Louisiana, temperature and precipitation are most often the primary drivers of annual changes in presence and abundance. On the cold extreme of temperature, the entering and exiting of winter hibernation, called diapause, can be fatal to a mosquito if it’s not prepared.
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In Louisiana, wheat acreage is below 10,000 acres, down from nearly 50,000 acres last year, said BoydPadgett, Louisiana Ag Center Extension small grains specialist.
“Price and late season freeze are some of the reasons for the decreased acreage,” Padgett said.
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The LSU AgCenter Agricultural Leadership Development Program is now accepting applications for Class XIX, which is scheduled to begin in January 2025 with a completion date of February 2027.
“Developing leaders is essential to advancing agriculture, especially in areas such as finance, policy issues and regulatory matters,” said Matt Lee, vice president for agriculture and dean of the College of Agriculture. “The graduates of this program continue to advocate for agriculture and help maintain a healthy and viable industry that plays a crucial role in Louisiana’s economy.”
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Its full name is Climate Resilient Innovations for Sustainable Production of Rice, but it’s mostly known by the acronym CRISP Rice.
The goal of this project being undertaken by scientists with the LSU AgCenter is to enhance the profitability and sustainability of rice production in the southern U.S.
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Common rust has been reported in some fields in central Louisiana and on the Dean Lee Research and Extension Center. However, this disease has not been a major concern in previous years.
Common rust may be the first disease found in corn fields and usually occurs in the lower-to-mid-canopy. Disease development is favored when temperatures are cool (60-77oF) and leaf wetness of 4-6 hours.
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