When Aaron Ashbrook was an undergraduate in college, he spent a summer working on Mackinac Island, Michigan. On the second-to-last day of his visit, he hung up some clothes to dry and later found that a bat made its way into his room and was residing in his clothes.
Read MoreWhen a Tangipahoa Parish strawberry farmer contacted LSU AgCenter horticulture agent Mary Helen Ferguson about his crop loss, at first glance, she observed symptoms that alone could have been related to a number of common diseases. It wasn’t until she took a closer look that she found something more concerning.
Read MoreThis guide provides a general overview of the common insect pests affecting soybean crops in Louisiana. It includes descriptions of each pest’s life cycle, morphological characteristics, feeding behavior, and the damage they cause to soybean plants. The guide also offers visual identification tips.
Read MoreMatt Lee, LSU's vice president for agriculture, will serve as the university's interim president starting July 1, the university said Monday.
He will serve as interim leader while the university conducts a national search for a permanent president. The announcement follows the news that LSU President William Tate IV will step down after June 30 to become president of Rutgers University in New Jersey.
Read MoreAcross the state, Louisiana Master Gardeners are building vegetable gardens in elementary schools, beautifying public spaces with landscaping and lending their green thumbs to a variety of projects.
In 2024, more than 2,500 volunteers gave 83,391 hours to their communities through the LSU AgCenter Louisiana Master Gardener Program.
Read MoreBaton Rouge native and new LSU graduate Janice Pearson has always been passionate about Louisiana’s wild spaces. With a natural resource and ecology management degree, she’s turning that passion into purpose as she steps into a new role with LSU’s School of Renewable Natural Resources as a wildlife research technician.
Read MoreA seven-year collaboration between Loveland Products, Inc., and the LSU AgCenter is driving innovation in rice breeding and agricultural research. Through the LPI Research Station Support Fund, Loveland has provided critical resources that have enabled the AgCenter to expand its rice breeding program, launch impactful grant writing initiatives and support early-stage research projects.
Read MoreThe Louisiana Drought Team (LDT), in coordination with the national USDM authors, agreed to “status-quo” across the state this week. Thus, D0 “abnormally dry” coverage was maintained but not expanded across portions of Cameron and Vermilion parishes.
Several periods of rain during the 7-day monitoring period resulted in street/nuisance flooding in some areas, saturated or over-saturated soils, and rivers and streams rising to near or above flood stage. Moisture demands will be increasing as we move later through spring and into summer, but right now moisture reserves are more than sufficient to meet that increase.
Read MoreLow-income households frequently encounter significant barriers in accessing safe and affordable opportunities for physical activity. Many neighborhoods lack parks, recreational facilities and safe walking paths, making it difficult for families to engage in regular exercise. Interestingly, many zoos in the United States are situated in low-income areas, presenting a unique opportunity to address the lack of accessible recreational spaces.
Read MoreNitrogen is one of the essential elements on which life depends. However, while nitrogen is abundant in the atmosphere as nitrogen gas (N₂), this form is largely inert and unusable by most living organisms.
To be biologically useful, nitrogen must be converted into ammonia (NH₃), a form that living systems can incorporate into vital biomolecules like DNA, RNA, and proteins.
Read MoreThe 2025/26 U.S. corn outlook is for record supplies and total use, and higher ending stocks. The corn crop is projected at 15.8 billion bushels, up 6 percent from a year ago on increases to both area and yield. Planted area of 95.3 million acres if realized would be the highest in over a decade. The yield projection of 181.0 bushels per acre is based on a weather-adjusted trend assuming normal planting progress and summer growing season weather.
Read MoreMark Shirley, a Louisiana Sea Grant and LSU AgCenter marine extension agent, retired in March after 41 years of service. He is known for many things during his career, but most notably, he developed Marsh Maneuvers — established in 1989 as an immersive education program for 4-H students to experience Louisiana's coast. The program motivates students toward studying coastal ecology and biological sciences.
Read MoreA produce prescription program is putting fresh fruits and vegetables within reach for families in rural Louisiana.
The Healthy Families Produce Prescription (HFPRx) program — developed through a partnership of the LSU AgCenter’s High Obesity Program (HOP), Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign and About Fresh — is now available in Assumption, Terrebonne, Winn, Morehouse and Claiborne parishes.
Read MoreSpring is in full swing as producers work to get any remaining cool season forages off pastures to allow for warm season forages to make their way through. Remember that forages, such as our winter annuals, can easily shade out summer perennials like bermudagrass. Your local extension agent can help you develop a plan to ensure maximum production of warm season forages on your operation.
Read MoreWarm-season perennial grasses such as bahiagrass, bermudagrass, and dallisgrass make up most of the acres of improved pasture in Louisiana. They also produce most of the grass hay harvested in the state. These grasses, if properly managed, are capable of remaining productive for many years after establishment, but initial establishment costs can be high.
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