Posts in Specialty crops
New Community Garden Takes Root Along Coteau Road

A new community vegetable garden is springing up outside the Elk’s Lodge at 1228 Coteau Road.

It marks the return of the Greauxing at Home program after a delay due to the coronavirus pandemic. A collaboration among the LSU AgCenter, the nonprofit St. Francis Vegetable Garden and Louisiana Medicaid provider Healthy Blue, the program helps residents learn how to grow, cook and preserve fruits and vegetables.

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2021 Pesticide Applicators Recertification Classes

Louisiana pesticide applicator recertification looks a little different than in years past. Beginning in the late summer of 2020 the LSU AgCenter worked with Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry (LDAF) to provide different options for commercial pesticide applicators to become recertified to meet state and federal requirements.

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It's Tater Time

For those of you who keep a vegetable garden, it’s time to get those potatoes in the ground. Potatoes are easy to cultivate and provide many essential vitamins such as calcium, iron, vitamins B6 and C, and potassium. They also provide dietary fiber, some protein and prebiotic resistant starch to boot.

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Louisiana Master Farmer Program Graduates 2020 Class

The Louisiana Master Farmer Program, an LSU AgCenter-led initiative that teaches about conservation, recently graduated its 2020 class. Five new Master Farmer certifications as well as 14 recertifications were awarded Jan. 13 during a virtual meeting of the Louisiana Association of Conservation Districts. Also, Mead Hardwick, of Tensas Parish, was named the 2020 Louisiana Outstanding Master Farmer.

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SU Ag Center's St. Helenia Farmers Market Turns Food Desert Into Healthier Community

The small parish of St. Helena is located in Southeast, Louisiana with a population of 10,016 residents. Although the parish is comprised of cities covered in green pastures and rural scenes, ideal for farm life, it is classified by the USDA as an extreme food desert. As a result of the scarcity of nutritious foods, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported the health risk of St. Helena's citizens as severe, due to high percentages of hypertension, diabetes, strokes, and cancer whwhich riddles this small community.

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