December 2003 AgNews Links

December 31, 2003
Take Care To Lessen Chances Of Cold, Flu  
AMARILLO – Flu season seems to be particularly worrisome this year, according to news reports, especially since supplies of vaccine are running short.

December 30, 2003
Texas Quail Index-Concho County Connection  
PAINT ROCK - What's a quail worth? Ben Sims, longtime Concho County rancher, figures his wild quail crop last year netted him $16 a bird. He's seen times when a good lamb didn't bring that much.

December 29, 2003
Statewide Beef Cattle Reproduction Clinic Dates Set  
COLLEGE STATION – Texas Cooperative Extension will offer 26 beef cattle artificial insemination/pregnancy determination clinics throughout Texas in 2004.

December 29, 2003
Texas A&M Offers Sensory Science Workshop  
COLLEGE STATION - Putting a little more science into retailers' food selection was the focus of a recent sensory science seminar sponsored by Texas Cooperative Extension and led by Texas A&M University meat sciences researcher Dr. Rhonda Miller.

December 26, 2003
Hamilton Honored For Contributions To Range Management  
COLLEGE STATION – Wayne Hamilton, a senior lecturer with the department of rangeland and ecology management at Texas A&M University and a researcher with the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, recently received the 2003 Outstanding Contribution to Range Management Award.

December 26, 2003
Hamilton Honored For Contributions To Range Management  
COLLEGE STATION – Wayne Hamilton, a senior lecturer with the department of rangeland and ecology management at Texas A&M University and a researcher with the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, recently received the 2003 Outstanding Contribution to Range Management Award.

December 26, 2003
Pillai Named Director Of National Center  
COLLEGE STATION – Dr. Suresh Pillai has been named director of the National Center for Electron Beam Food Research at Texas A&M University.

December 25, 2003
New Year'S Resolution: Get In Better Fiscal Shape  
COLLEGE STATION – While you're resolving to lose weight, quit smoking and exercise more this year, give some thought to getting into a little better fiscal shape too.

December 24, 2003
Texas Expert: Beef Markets Will Feel Impact Of U.s. Mad Cow Case  
COLLEGE STATION -- Beef markets will feel the repercussions of the United States' suspected case of mad cow disease reported Tuesday, but consumers should feel confident the country's beef supply is safe as surveillance efforts continue.

December 24, 2003
Vegetables That Prevent May Ultimately Cure Some Cancers  
COLLEGE STATION – Broccoli, cabbage, turnips and mustard greens. A dose a day keeps most cancers away.

December 24, 2003
Texas Fall, Winter Gardening Good For Health  
COLLEGE STATION – Take the plunge now – with cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower transplants – and a healthy harvest of these cancer-preventing vegetables will be ready to serve within two or three months, Texas Cooperative Extension horticulturists advise.

December 23, 2003
Texas Crop, Weather Report  
COLLEGE STATION - As farmers and ranchers prepare for a new year, most are looking look back on 2003 with smiling faces, reports Texas Cooperative Extension.

December 23, 2003
Weslaco Student Keeps Poinsettias Pretty  
WESLACO -- Almost daily from September to mid-December, 16-year old Amy McDaniel slipped quietly into an ornamental greenhouse at the Texas A&M agriculture research facilities in the Lower Rio Grande Valley. While most of her classmates at Weslaco High School were still dressing for class, McDaniel would go in, do her thing, then quietly slip out again.

December 23, 2003
Overton: Evers Receives Texas A&M System Regents Fellow Award  
OVERTON – The Texas A&M University Board of Regents has named Dr. Gerald Evers, an Overton-based researcher with the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, as the recipient of the Regents Fellow Service Award.

December 23, 2003
Amarillo: Amosson Receives Texas A&M System Regents Fellow Award  
COLLEGE STATION -- Dr. Stephen H. Amosson, Texas Cooperative Extension economist based at Amarillo, was recognized by The Texas A&M University System Board of Regents during ceremonies held recently.

December 23, 2003
Amarillo: Greene Receives Texas A&M System Regents Fellow Award  
AMARILLO – Dr. L. Wayne Greene, Texas Agricultural Experiment Station animal nutritionist based in Amarillo, received a Regents Fellow Service Award recently in College Station. The award is the highest honor bestowed by the Texas A&M System Board of Regents.

December 22, 2003
Steel Tariff Repeal Good News For Valley Citrus Industry  
WESLACO -- The Lower Rio Grande Valley citrus industry breathed a collective sigh of relief when word came from the White House recently that President Bush had scrapped a 20-month old steel tariff. Local industry leaders feared the steep tariffs would have started a trade war with Europe and devastated the south Texas citrus industry.

December 19, 2003
Gatesville: Leon River Restoration Certification Held  
GATESVILLE – More than 60 landowners, contractors, and federal and state representatives attended a brush certification program held at the Coryell County Activities Center this month as part of the Leon River Restoration Project.

December 18, 2003
Carbon Monoxide Can Be Deadly Winter Visitor  
COLLEGE STATION - Like a monster in a horror film, this silent and invisible killer can strike down whole families while they sleep.

December 17, 2003
New Bait Blower To Aid Fire Ant Control  
COLLEGE STATION – Technology developed by Texas A&M University to combat red imported fire ants has been adapted and is now available commercially.

December 16, 2003
Texas Crop, Weather Report  
COLLEGE STATION – Rain is at the top of Texas wheat producers' lists this Christmas, Texas Cooperative Extension reports.

December 16, 2003
Goat Breeders To Benefit From New Program  
SAN ANGELO -- Expected Progeny Differences or EPDs have been available within several cattle breeds for years. Boer goat breeders will soon have the same tool thanks to the Boer Goat Improvement Network or "B-GIN" (pronounced "begin"), a genetic improvement program being developed by the American Boer Goat Association with assistance from the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station.

December 15, 2003
Five Texas 4-H Photographers Win Spots On 2004 National Calendar  
COLLEGE STATION – If one picture is worth a thousand words, then a group of Texas 4-H'ers have a lot to say.

December 12, 2003
"Tomorrow’s Top Agricultural Producer" Helps Plan For Future  
DALLAS – The markets have just closed, and Clara Thomson has sold three pens of finished feedlot steers to a packer buyer – only she didn't receive the price she was asking for to break even.

December 11, 2003
Last Minute Tax Tips Can Save Money Before Dec. 31  
COLLEGE STATION – Santa Claus may be coming to town, but shortly afterward, so is the tax man. Dr. Joyce Cavanagh, Texas Cooperative Extension family economics specialist, said taxpayers still have time to give themselves a last-minute tax break before the end of the year.

December 10, 2003
Ethnic Foods Can Be Tasty Part Of Diabetic Diet  
COLLEGE STATION – According to 2002 figures from the American Diabetes Association, 18.2 million Americans, or 6.3 percent of the total population, have diabetes. Millions of these people with diabetes are African-Americans, Latino-Americans and Native Americans and Alaska Natives.

December 09, 2003
Texas Crop, Weather Report  
COLLEGE STATION — Cotton producers in West Texas are looking forward to good yields from their crop, in spite of the weather-related problems that threatened it earlier in the season, Texas Cooperative Extension reports.

December 09, 2003
San Angelo: Range Restoration Workshop Slated For Dec. 17  
SAN ANGELO -- Texas Cooperative Extension and the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station are sponsoring a "Rangeland Restoration Tour" on the San Angelo State School lands at Carlsbad beginning at 1:30 p.m. Dec. 17. The tour is designed to show the restorative effects of ripping, seeding, and weed control on severely degraded rangeland.

December 09, 2003
Food Safety, Ethics Focus Of Curriculum  
COLLEGE STATION – A new FFA and 4-H curriculum in Texas is rolling food safety and ethics into one package.

December 08, 2003
Texas High Plains Vegetable Conference Slated For Jan. 13 In Canyon  
LUBBOCK - Vegetable growers, processors, market gardeners and master gardeners can renew their production and marketing skills and gain new insight on a variety of topics at the Jan. 13 High Plains Vegetable Conference at West Texas A&M University in Canyon.

December 05, 2003
Don’t Let Foodborne ‘bug’ Spoil Holiday Festivities  
COLLEGE STATION – Unexpected guests can ruin holiday festivities – especially when those "guests" are preventable foodborne illnesses. Good food safety practices, from storage to cleanup, are the best way to keep these ‘bugs' at bay, said Dr. Peggy Van Laanen, Texas Cooperative Extension nutrition specialist.

December 04, 2003
Field Guide On Texas Grasses Available  
COLLEGE STATION – "Know Your Grasses," the field guide from Texas Cooperative Extension, is back by popular demand.

December 03, 2003
Traditional South Texas Christmas Events, Aggie Night Slated Dec. 10  
WESLACO -- A festive day featuring Christmas traditions of South Texas and an evening of information for Lower Rio Grande Valley parents interested in sending their children to Texas A&M University are offered to the public Dec. 10 at the Texas A&M University System Agricultural Research and Extension Center, FM 1015 and Business Highway 83 in Weslaco.

December 02, 2003
Texas Crop, Weather Report  
COLLEGE STATION— Cooler temperatures are helping put the finishing touches on the Texas spinach crop, Texas Cooperative Extension reports.

December 02, 2003
Grandparents As Parents: Texas Ranks Second  
SHERMAN – Fifteen years ago, with their youngest just out of college, Dorothy Perkins and her husband were enjoying their empty nest. They had become used to not having kids around. Mrs. Perkins also cared for her 89-year-old father, who lived about 90 miles away.

December 01, 2003
Health: Problems With Older Eyes  
AMARILLO – Older may mean wiser, but the clearer vision that comes with age and wisdom is only philosophical.