![Aly Francis, standing at right, presents ground pork from her barrows to a senior center in Paris, Mo. Her efforts to curb food insecurity by donating pigs helped inspire Hogs for Hunger. Photo courtesy of Aly Francis.](/sites/default/files/styles/flexslider_full_no_crop_300x200/public/wysiwyg/Extensiondata/NewsAdmin/Photos/20210615-h4h-2.jpg?itok=bXCBRF3N)
![Aly Francis, standing at right, presents ground pork from her barrows to a senior center in Paris, Mo. Her efforts to curb food insecurity by donating pigs helped inspire Hogs for Hunger. Photo courtesy of Aly Francis.](/sites/default/files/styles/flexslider_full_no_crop_300x200/public/wysiwyg/Extensiondata/NewsAdmin/Photos/20210615-h4h-2.jpg?itok=bXCBRF3N)
Missouri 4-H'ers can reduce food insecurity across the state
COLUMBIA, Mo. – More than 1.1 million Missourians are food insecure. Missouri Farmers Care and Missouri 4-H are working with pork producers, meat processors and now FFA and 4-H youths to help curb food insecurity in the state.
![Top three juniors in the poultry judging contest, from left: Asher Ahrens and Hunter Aufdenberg, both of Cape Girardeau County, and Aiden Wimmer, Callaway County.](/sites/default/files/styles/flexslider_full_no_crop_300x200/public/wysiwyg/Extensiondata/NewsAdmin/Photos/20210614-poultry-j.jpg?itok=zjKssKHh)
2021 Missouri 4-H State Poultry Day
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Thirty youths from around the state participated in Missouri 4-H State Poultry Day, held June 12 at the University of Missouri Animal Science Research Center.
!['The stocker cattle industry acts as a niche transition between the cow-calf operation, the feedlots and the packers by putting weight on calves as cheaply as we can,' says MU Extension beef specialist Eric Bailey.](/sites/default/files/styles/flexslider_full_no_crop_300x200/public/wysiwyg/Extensiondata/NewsAdmin/Photos/20210614-bailey-1.jpg?itok=uABbNY0G)
Stocker cattle could add value to your operation without breaking the bank
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Stocker cattle make up just 12 percent of the 4.25 million head currently part of the beef industry in Missouri. But these cattle could add as much as $78 million to Missouri’s economy, according to the Missouri Beef Value-Added Study, a 2016 University of Missouri Extension report for the Missouri Agricultural and Small Business Development Authority.
![Montgomery County 4-H'er Kendra Stille and her 26-inch channel catfish, the Missouri state fish.](/sites/default/files/styles/flexslider_full_no_crop_300x200/public/wysiwyg/Extensiondata/NewsAdmin/Photos/20210614-4Hfish-1.jpg?itok=BBhCJ4kj)
Missouri 4-H'ers net awards at 2021 Sportfishing Slam
COLUMBIA, Mo. – The 2021 Missouri 4-H Sportfishing Slam ran March through May with 30 contest entries. The Slam offers nine different categories made up of varying species, habitats and baits. 4-H members are challenged to stretch their knowledge and skills of fishing in Missouri.
Show-Me-Select sale at Palmyra marks 25th year
PALMYRA, Mo. – Twenty-nine buyers bought more than $305,000 worth of bred heifers in less than 60 minutes at the June 5 Show-Me-Select Replacement Heifer Program sale at F&T Livestock Auction in Palmyra.University of Missouri Extension livestock specialist Daniel Mallory said 165 heifers averaged $1,851.
Make the most from late-planted soybean
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Soggy fields, low soil temperatures and 16 cloudy days in May delayed soybean planting in Missouri.Average yield for soybean planted in the third week of June is at least 25% less than soybean planted in early May, and July plantings fare even worse, says University of Missouri Extension soybean specialist Bill Wiebold.
![MU Extension specialists are seeing signs of ergot in Missouri grasses. Ergot bodies look like mouse droppings, as seen in this 2013 file photo. The toxic fungus infects grasses and cereal crops and can cause severe illness and death in livestock. Photo b](/sites/default/files/styles/flexslider_full_no_crop_300x200/public/wysiwyg/Extensiondata/NewsAdmin/Photos/ErgotInHand1-1024x576.jpg?itok=yCAW2t41)
Be on lookout for ergot
COLUMBIA, Mo. – University of Missouri livestock and forage specialists are reporting ergot infestations that can cause major losses in livestock, said MU Extension state forage specialist Craig Roberts.
![Annual population change in Missouri counties (2019-2020). From 'Population Trends in Missouri and Its Regions' by Mark White, University of Missouri associate extension professor.](/sites/default/files/styles/flexslider_full_no_crop_300x200/public/wysiwyg/Extensiondata/NewsAdmin/Photos/20210611-mopop-1.jpg?itok=pbbQcZv8)
MU report looks at population trends in Missouri
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Missouri’s population grew by about 11,000 people from 2019 to 2020. This 0.2% increase is only half the national rate of 0.4%, though it is typical of the modest growth experienced by many other Midwestern states.
Rising feed prices call for cutting the fat in cow-calf operations
COLUMBIA, Mo. – University of Missouri Extension beef nutritionist Eric Bailey says beef producers can offset rising feed prices with changes in their operations. “It’s time to literally cut the fat from cow-calf operations,” says Bailey.Rising corn and soybean commodity prices are making their way downstream to feed prices, putting a pinch on profits.
Preparing Undergraduates for Agriculture and Food Research Careers: An Internship Paradigm
Abstract: The University of Missouri Integrated STEM Internship Program (MU-ISIP) is a 9-week internship experience that helps prepare undergraduates for the workforce or graduate school in four Agriculture, Food and Research Initiative (AFRI) areas:
Up to test – what does that mean?
NEVADA, Mo. – “I brought it up to test.” University of Missouri Extension agronomist Pat Miller often hears that when farmers talk about crop fertilizer applications.“I do not think it means what you think it means,” Miller says, quoting the movie “The Princess Bride.”According to Miller, people who say that usually mean that they made a one-time fertilizer application recommended by a soil test.
![American gooseberry fruit at the immature stage ready for harvest. Photo by Michele Warmund.](/sites/default/files/styles/flexslider_full_no_crop_300x200/public/wysiwyg/Extensiondata/NewsAdmin/Photos/20210607-gb-1.jpg?itok=pauDU4UQ)
Gooseberry: Small but mighty
COLUMBIA, Mo. – “Gooseberry grows as a small deciduous shrub with edible fruit,” says University of Missouri Extension horticulturist Michele Warmund.Gooseberry clubs once popular
![MU Extension, Faith Walk Academy, Monroe County officials, and MU Master Naturalists and Master Gardeners help Faith Walk Academy students learn about gardening and supply food for the community. Participants in the effort include, from left, Sarah Geist,](/sites/default/files/styles/flexslider_full_no_crop_300x200/public/wysiwyg/Extensiondata/NewsAdmin/Photos/20210604-mcf-1.jpg?itok=tjsh56vn)
Healthy communities begin with healthy food
PARIS, Mo. – Healthy communities grow in bountiful gardens.A partnership between University of Missouri Extension and groups in the Mark Twain Lake area is teaching people in Monroe County to grow and use fresh produce.
Buyers show confidence at Show-Me-Select heifer sales
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Spring Show-Me-Select Replacement Heifer sales saw heavy interest and strong prices, says Erin Larimore, sales coordinator for University of Missouri Extension’s Show-Me-Select Replacement Heifer Program.
Full house packs Show-Me-Select sale at Vienna
VIENNA, Mo. - The May 21 Show-Me-Select Bred Heifer Sale at South Central Regional Stockyards in Vienna, Mo., saw a full house with lively bidding.Eighteen consignors from Osage, Maries, Callaway, Gasconade, Crawford and Miller counties sold 159 heifers for $311,800, said University of Missouri Extension livestock specialist Anita Ellis.Lenny Keilholz sold the top-selling lot for $2,400 per head. Two lots were purchased online via DV…
![Cass County 4-H'ers, seen here helping at the Shepherd’s Staff Food Pantry in Harrisonville, Mo., raised the equivalent of more than 53,000 meals during the 2021 4-H Feeding Missouri food drive.](/sites/default/files/styles/flexslider_full_no_crop_300x200/public/wysiwyg/Extensiondata/NewsAdmin/Photos/20210601-feedmo-1.jpg?itok=FWrdoliY)
Missouri 4-H'ers reach food drive milestone
COLUMBIA, Mo. – 4-H clubs across Missouri have raised more than three quarters of a million meals to feed hungry families over the last three years.
Sending students happiness in a box, TLC for College - Sedalia, MO
When three of Marina Scheiner’s nieces were away at college, Scheiner wanted to send them boxes of goodies to ensure they felt supported, appreciated and encouraged. But even with good intentions,“it was so hard to get it done. That conundrum sparked an idea.
Memorial Day offers time for delayed healing
COLUMBIA, Mo. – For five generations, the James O’Donnell Funeral Home has held the hands and hearts of grieving northeastern Missouri families as they said their goodbyes.Fifth-generation owner Jimmy O’Donnell says no time in history challenged him and other rural funeral directors more than the COVID-19 pandemic.
![Pink peony. Credit required: Photo by Oleksandra Deriy, shared under a Creative Commons license (CC-BY-SA 4.0), via Wikimedia Commons.](/sites/default/files/styles/flexslider_full_no_crop_300x200/public/wysiwyg/Extensiondata/NewsAdmin/Photos/20210526-pink-peony.jpg?itok=x22X-3YN)
Peonies thrive on neglect, can live more than 100 years
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Peonies serve as the traditional flower of Memorial Day. Their huge, lavish blossoms stand as fragrant sentinels in country cemeteries, conjuring memories of times and people past.In the 1800s, when the holiday was called Decoration Day, peonies were one of the few flowers in bloom in late May and were widely used to adorn the graves of fallen soldiers, said David Trinklein, University of Missouri Extension…
Exporting: The First Step
Earlier in this series we looked at some of the benefits and basics of exporting. In this article, we will review an important first step, how to determine if there are no export control restrictions on your product or service. Unless there is a potential military or dual military-civilian use, it is likely there will not be export restrictions on your product or service.
![Missouri 4-H Move Across Missouri.](/sites/default/files/styles/flexslider_full_no_crop_300x200/public/wysiwyg/Extensiondata/NewsAdmin/Photos/20210524-4Hmove-1.png?itok=pg7AK_kT)
Missouri 4-H'ers get out and move
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Every year, hundreds of Missouri 4-H’ers, parents and volunteers commit to the pursuit of a healthy lifestyle through Missouri 4-H’s Move Across Missouri challenge.
![MU Extension in Ste. Genevieve is home to the first of three demonstration plots in the state to help develop standardized practices for growing lavender in Missouri. Pictured, from left, are MU Extension horticulturists and project researchers Patrick By](/sites/default/files/styles/flexslider_full_no_crop_300x200/public/wysiwyg/Extensiondata/NewsAdmin/Photos/20210524-lavender-2.jpg?itok=fURYT3kx)
Helping growers make lavender thrive in muggy Missouri
University of Missouri Extension is about to take some of the guesswork out of growing lavender in Missouri. The first of three lavender demonstration plots in the state was planted May 14 at the MU Extension center in Ste. Genevieve.
![2021 MU Engagement Scholars, from left, Nicole Campione-Barr, Sarah Diem, Tim Evans, Sarah Jacquet, Kale Monk and Enid Schatz.](/sites/default/files/styles/flexslider_full_no_crop_300x200/public/wysiwyg/Extensiondata/NewsAdmin/Photos/20210524-EngScholars.jpg?itok=BBhZDwQ0)
MU announces inaugural Engagement Scholars
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Six University of Missouri faculty members have been selected as the inaugural group of MU Engagement Scholars.“The Office of Extension and Engagement chose the scholars for their potential to create dynamic engagement opportunities for Missourians,” said Susan Renoe, assistant vice chancellor for research, extension and engagement.
It pays to know what your farm liability insurance covers
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Without regular policy checks, farm liability insurance might be like a hospital gown – not enough coverage where you need it most.Thoroughly read your policy regularly and check for gaps and needed updates, says University of Missouri Extension economist Ray Massey. “Planning is important, but even the best plans do not always succeed in managing risk,” he says.
'Bee' mindful of pollinators when spraying fruit crops
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Bees are a fruit tree owner’s friend and need special protection from pesticides, says University of Missouri Extension horticulturist Michele Warmund.Bees are essential to pollinate many fruit crops, including apple, pear, Japanese plums, sweet cherries, blueberry and elderberry, says Warmund.