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| Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences VISION eXtra is e-mailed weekly to faculty and staff of Bumpers College and the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, Division of Agriculture. This service is primarily for timely announcement of news and events for the AAES and Bumpers College. Submit items to hmedders@uark.edu. You may also wish to submit items to headline@uark.edu for posting on "UA Daily Headlines" for campus-wide distribution. |
May 18, 2009 |
1. Joseph N. Beasley: 1924-2009
2. Heavy rains delay plot work
3. Jennie Popp receives Faculty Gold Medal Award
4. Poultry field day focuses on windrowing litter
5. Applications available for National Collegiate Agricultural Ambassador Team
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1. Joseph N. Beasley: 1924-2009
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Joseph Beasley |
A graveside service was scheduled for 2 p.m. Monday for Joseph Noble Beasley, 85, of Farmington, who died Thursday, May 14, at Washington Regional Medical Center.
Beasley, a veterinarian and poultry pathologist, joined the University of Arkandsas faculty in 1949 and retired in June 1995. He was one of the first pathologists to work on Marek's disease of poultry and identified the means by which the disease was spread. Other research involved turkey hemorrhagic enteritis, mycotoxins and bursal disease, and the pathology and pathogenesis of proventriculitis in broilers.
Beasley was born March 11, 1924, in Centerton. He served in the Army and then the Navy as pharmacist mate. He was on the faculty at Texas A&M University for seven years and at the medical school in Oklahoma City for two years.
Survivors include his wife, Joan Beasley; a son, Michael of California; and a sister, Ruth Raggio of New Orleans.
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2. Heavy rains delay plot work
Heavy rains have played havoc with planting schedules for field experiments at Division of Agriculture locations across the state. The Vegetable Research Station at Kibler was closed on May 7 due to flooding of access roads. Station director Dennis Motes said the flooding caused no major damage, but has delayed planting and other plot work by three weeks to a month.
Water from the Vegetable Research Station normally drains through gates in an Arkansas River levee, but the levee gate was closed when the river reached flood stage, causing water to back up on the station property and access roads.
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3. Jennie Popp receives Faculty Gold Medal Award
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Jennie Popp |
Jennie Popp is one of seven faculty members awarded the Office of Post-Graduate Fellowships Departmental Gold Medal Award for outstanding support for students competing for nationally competitive awards.
Popp, an associate professor of agricultural economics and agribusiness, teaches and conducts research in agricultural production risk management, environmental risk management and agricultural and environmental policy.
Other award recipients were Kameri Christy-McMullin, School of Social Work; Jamie Hestekin, chemical engineering; Scott Mason, industrial engineering; Carol Reeves, management; Charles Riggs, kinesiology; and Richard J. Rulli, music.
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4. Poultry field day focuses on windrowing litter
The next Division of Agriculture field days scheduled for this summer and fall will be a Horticulture Field Day June 18 at the Southwest Research and Extension Center at Hope and a a field day for vocational agriculture teachers on June 24 to be be conducted at the Livestock and Forestry Research Station at Batesville by faculty from the Arkansas Forest Resources Center based in Monticello. See the complete schedule online at http://aaes.uark.edu/fielddays_09.html.
At a poultry field day May 5 at the Applied Broiler Research Farm at Savoy, George "Bud" Malone, poultry extension specialist at the University of Deleware, said windrowing litter in poultry houses can improve flock health. The Division of Agriculture field day was co-sponsored by Oklahoma State University, Winrock International and the Brown Bear Corporation, which markets litter management equipment.
Windrowing, in which litter is piled in a row to allow it to go through the composting cycle, was demonstrated. Susan Watkins, POSC, said composting raises the temperature of litter to a level that can kill potentially harmful microbes.
Malone said growers that use windrowing report improved bird health and performance and a significant reduction in darkling beetle populations. Depending on the method of composting, windrowing may reduce ammonia levels in the subsequent flock and either reduce or eliminate the need to crust-out houses, he said. Some have implemented this program as a means of improving flock health, others to reduce bedding replacement cost, and some growers use it as a waste management reduction strategy, Malone said.
Other field day speakers included Yi Liang, UA assistant professor of biological and agricultural engineering and a Division of Agriculture specialist in the area of air quality, who spoke on the use of sprinklers for bird cooling; George Driever of Oklahoma State University, who discussed tree management for wind buffers around poultry houses; and Tom Tabler, manager of the division's applied broiler research farm, who spoke on litter conditioning between flocks. Also demonstrated were the use of the Weeden Sprinkler System for cooling birds in hot weather and the use of LED lights to reduce energy costs.
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5. Applications available for National Collegiate Agricultural Ambassador Team
Applications for the 2009-10 National team are now available. Selected ambassadors will have the opportunity to promote agriculture awareness around their community and state. Ambassadors will be awarded a $1,500 scholarship, as well as a digital camera and the use of a laptop and LCD projector for the year. Additionally, all expenses will be covered as they travel promoting the importance of agriculture to different audiences. Applications must be postmarked by June 1, 2009 and can be found at www.ffa.org/collegiate. For more information or questions, contact Marty Tatman at mtatman@ffa.org .
AAES and Bumpers College Web sites:
http://aaes.uark.edu/
http://bumperscollege.uark.edu/