News - February 2022

Division of Agriculture honors outstanding faculty, staff at annual awards ceremony

FERNDALE, Ark. — Faculty and staff who exemplified the best work within the land grant mission of extension, research and teaching in Arkansas were honored Friday during the annual Agriculture Awards presented jointly by the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture and the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences.

Division of Agriculture recognizes patents for crops, equipment, immune responses

FERNDALE, Ark. — The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture on Friday recognized faculty for patents they obtained on their inventions.

Updated decision tool helps farmers decide whether to cut potassium fertilizer during record fertilizer prices

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — As fertilizer prices soar, Arkansas farmers are looking for places to cut costs, and potassium is often at the top of that list. Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station experts caution growers to choose their cuts carefully and offer a toolkit to help make those decisions easier and more cost effective.

Sugars are important to plants but not essential for sap flow

MONTICELLO, Ark. — Discovery that plants have a backup plan to move sap even without the presence of sugar — once thought impossible — is the result of a decade-long study published in the February 21 issue of "Nature Plants. " The multinational research team behind the discovery includes lead author Benjamin Babst, a scientist from the Arkansas Forest Resources Center, and the College of Forestry, Agriculture and Natural Resources at the University of Arkansas at Monticello. 

Arkansas researchers lead fight against pathogens in greenhouses, hydroponics

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Even in the most controlled of environments, some things are just going to be out of growers’ control. Researchers at the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station are working to understand those variables, including soilborne pathogens and other disease factors that attack plants, to give farmers, horticulturists and others the best possible advantage.

Bryant Aquatic Center to host 2022 Arkansas SeaPerch Challenge March 11

LITTLE ROCK — Forty-one teams, each equipped with a remote-control submersible assembled from motors, pool noodles and PVC pipe, will be competing for the top prizes in the Arkansas SeaPerch Challenge, March 11 at The Center at Bishop Park in Bryant.

Rice Processing Program develops on-farm drying guidelines to maximize quality, reduce energy

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station's Rice Processing Program has released new recommendations to guide on-farm, in-bin rice drying in Arkansas to maximize quality and energy savings.

Sustaining forest starts with planting trees

MONTICELLO, Ark. — The University of Arkansas at Monticello replanted its 82-acre harvested area of university-owned forest next to the Drew County Fairgrounds. A crew of 10 planted 36,000 seedlings in less than two days. Forest Manager Bobby Webb said the last time trees were hand-planted trees on the UAM forest was in 2011.

Bumpers College student named Outstanding Ph.D. Student in weed science

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Maria Zaccaro-Gruener, a graduate student in the University of Arkansas’ Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences, has been named Outstanding Ph.D. Student for 2021 by the Southern Weed Science Society.

Arkansas research on long-cane blackberries in soilless substrate makes headway

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Controlled-environment agriculture researchers at the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station are pulling a trick on nature to get blackberries to grow out of season.

Hands-on waterfowl education held at Wonders of Waterfowl Workshop

HUMPHREY, Ark. — Duck hunting is a passionate pastime for many Arkansans and their families. The Natural State falls within the Mississippi Flyway, the route followed by ducks migrating from their breeding grounds in North America to their wintering grounds in the South. Arkansas 4-H, in partnership with the University of Arkansas at Monticello and the Five Oaks Agriculture, Research and Education Center, is working to make sure future generations continue their appreciation of this great resource.

Commercial, backyard poultry keepers urged to review biosecurity in light of potent avian flu strain

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Arkansas poultry growers, both commercial and backyard hobby flocks, are being asked to review appropriate biosecurity protocols in light of an avian influenza strain being found in in birds east of the Mississippi.

Matlock elected to National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine board valued for expertise in agriculture

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Marty Matlock, an Arkansas scientist with a national reputation for work in sustainability, has been elected to a three-year term on the Board of Agriculture and Natural Resources, or BANR, of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

New director named to lead Center for Food Animal Well-Being

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — A University of Arkansas alumna and Iowa native with academic research and animal industry experience is the new director of the Center for Food Animal Well-Being, a part of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture.

January Cattle Inventory Report shows tighter supplies, bullish market for Arkansas

LITTLE ROCK — Arkansas cattle inventories declined for the third straight year, falling more than 5 percent from January 2021 estimates, liquidating about 90,000 cattle and calves, according to the January Cattle Inventory Report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

CREATE BRIDGES program to offer hands-on training to small business owners

LITTLE ROCK – A community and economic development program from the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture is launching a new effort to help small business owners market and advertise their businesses.

Registration to open for Walk Across Arkansas Spring

LITTLE ROCK — The start of a new year often includes personal resolutions to exercise more and lead a healthier lifestyle. Walk Across Arkansas, an eight-week, group-based exercise program supported by the Cooperative Extension Service, is designed to help Arkansans do just that.

Little Rock brewery to offer beer made with Arkansas hops

LITTLE ROCK — It often takes something special to make something special. To wit: Arkansas hops — a rarity in their own right — will soon add a twist of flavor to a limited-release batch of Arkansas-brewed beer.

Division of Agriculture’s Rainey appointed to USDA Equity Commission

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Ron Rainey, assistant vice president of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture, has been appointed to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s newly established Equity Commission, one of two Arkansans chosen to serve.

Arkansas Blackberry Growers Association honors Division of Agriculture fruit breeder

LITTLE ROCK — The Arkansas Blackberry Growers Association has recognized John R. Clark, distinguished professor of horticulture and co-director of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture fruit breeding program, for his significant contributions to the blackberry industry.

Barber honored as soybean researcher of the year

JONESBORO, Ark. — If not for a text from a colleague, Tom Barber might not have been on hand to receive his honor as Soybean Researcher of the Year from the Conservation Systems Conferences.

Food Scientist Threlfall Named ASHS Southern Region Distinguished Researcher

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — Renee Threlfall, a research scientist in enology and viticulture at the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture and the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences, has been named winner of the Julian Miller Sr. Distinguished Researcher Award.

Four States Agricultural Expo set for Feb. 10 in Texarkana

TEXARKANA, Ark. – The Four States Agricultural Expo returns on Feb. 10, bringing together growers and producers from a four-state area to learn about the latest research findings and resources available for row crops, commercial horticulture, livestock and forages, integrated pest management, feral hogs and wildlife, home gardening, lawn, pond and more.