News Stories - Page 111

To help create a less stressful holiday meal, University of Georgia Extension specialists offer these tips. Plan ahead. 
Don't go it alone. Resist the urge to buy new things or try new recipes. Set realistic expectations for family affairs. Consider a seating chart. Remember, the traditional turkey your family has always enjoyed will round out your holiday meal much better than a half-frozen, half-cooked, deep-fried turkey would. CAES News
Celebrate Safely
As the holiday season arrives, the traditional images of loved ones crowded around a dinner table groaning under the weight of the holiday feast may look a little different this year: The recent surge in COVID-19 cases has prompted rising fears that holiday gatherings may accelerate the spread of the virus.
Growth of fairy ring fungi begin in the center of a ring and expand outward in a uniform, circular pattern over time. Mushrooms might only be visible during periods of wet weather, particularly in the fall. CAES News
Fairy Rings
Many residents have noticed mushrooms popping up in lawns and landscapes this season. When the “fungus among us” forms a circle or arc pattern, it’s commonly known as a fairy ring. According to medieval folklore, they were thought to appear after a band of fairies had danced in a circle. In some cases, fairy ring mushrooms can cause turfgrass discoloration or abnormal growth in lawns.
Katelyn Bickett (left), a senior agricultural communications major from Chickamauga, Georgia, and Brooke Raniere (right), a junior environmental economics major from Peachtree City, Georgia, will spend 12 weeks in the state Capitol during the legislative session that begins in January 2021. CAES News
Legislative Interns
Two students from the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences have been chosen for Georgia Agribusiness Council Legislative Internships for the spring 2021 Georgia General Assembly legislative session.
UGA researchers will evaluate the impact that detailed flood risk information has on home prices in high-risk zones, the purchase of flood insurance policies and community-level risk mitigation actions. They will also try to determine how communities use different types of flood risk information and how those sources influence their perceptions of flood risk. CAES News
Flood Risks
As residents across the state deal with periods of flood-level rainfall, University of Georgia researchers announce a partnership that will enable them to share flood risk data with other scientists across the U.S.
Senegal relies on importing dairy products to meet the country’s needs, but there is significant potential to enhance economic development in rural areas by supporting small dairy producers, who are predominantly women. CAES News
Dairy Food Safety
The University of Georgia has received a $700,000 grant from the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Food Safety to help improve food safety in the rapidly growing dairy industry in Senegal.
The winners of the 2020 D.W. Brooks Faculty Awards for Excellence are Bob Kemerait, Esther van der Knaap, Gregory Colson, Phillip Edwards and Tim Coolong. CAES News
Borlaug Delivers 2020 Brooks Lecture
The elemental message communicated by Julie Borlaug during the 2020 D.W. Brooks Lecture on Nov. 10 was that no child should be born in a world with hunger and famine.
College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences researchers tested biodegradable pots made from (left to right) wood pulp fiber, cow manure and coconut coir. CAES News
Sustainable Gardening
Professional and home gardeners alike can grow landscapes sustainably with the help of biodegradable plant containers, but gardeners may wonder whether these containers decompose quickly enough to avoid hindering plant growth.
Winners for the 2020 Upcycle Challenge are Owen Aymett, grades 2-5, who made a calf roping dummy;  Nandini Patel, grades 6-8, who created throw pillows; and Liam Jay, grades 10-12, who created a video game cabinet. CAES News
Upcycle Challenge
Georgia 4-H students rose to the occasion during the 4-H Upcycle Challenge, which encouraged youth to reuse — or upcycle — materials that normally would have been discarded or recycled to create functional items.
Peyton Collins of Union County had the prize-winning pumpkin, weighing 548 pounds. CAES News
Georgia 4-H pumpkin-growing contest
More than 25 pumpkins were submitted to Georgia 4-H's 2020 statewide pumpkin-growing contest, with the largest pumpkin, cultivated in north Georgia’s Union County, weighing in at a whopping 548 pounds.