This week I would like to answer a question and address an issue we are facing. Now that the snow is gone many of you may be worried about what is going to die next. Furthermore, our area cattlemen are some of the best in the business and even though times are tough in the agriculture community, like many farmers and rancher they continue to push forward.

Q: What will be the lasting damage caused by the snow?

A: To be totally honest, I don’t foresee any impact at all. Any damage we may see to plants was caused by the extended hard freeze we had about a month ago.

Snow, which is just another form of precipitation like rain, hail, or sleet, is not as devastating as the frigid temperatures. The biggest damage we may have endured from the snow was buildup on some trees which may have led to limbs breaking, but even that was minimal.

Sometimes with heavier snow you can see trouble if the light is blocked out for too long, but our snow was not quite heavy enough for that either. The snow did cause greater saturation of the soil but we are well past that stage as well. To sum it up I would say the snow was a pleasant gift for many area children and families and had no significant negative impact on any area plants.

Q: What problems do Miss-Lou cattleman face today?

A: Hundreds of families in the Miss-Lou are still actively involved in cattle production with over ten thousand head of cattle being raised in the surrounding communities. As a matter of fact several of the largest herds of cattle in both Louisiana and Mississippi can be found in our region. In the 1930s the Lum Brothers opened the first livestock market in Natchez which was located on Canal Street. This past year with the closing of the Natchez Stockyards cattle producers of the Miss-Lou no longer have a local market to sell their cattle. This has left many area cattlemen scrambling for an alternative market.

The Adams County Cattlemen’s Association has hosted a series of meetings this past summer and fall to discuss other marketing options that may be available. This coming 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 25 at the Adams County Extension office the Association will hold another such meeting. Featured speakers for the meeting will be Giles Brown and Donnie Perkins, who are partners in the Kinder Livestock Auction from Kinder, La. The men also own the Mansura Livestock Auction located near Marksville, La. which is now the closest livestock market to our area. The Mansura Livestock Auction is a very progressive and successful facility taking advantage of many new marketing strategies and techniques giving area producers more options in which to sell their cattle. These marketing options when added with changes many producers are making in their production management practices can increase the prices local producers can receive for their cattle.

We invite all area cattle producers to attend the Thursday night meeting to learn more about what marketing options may be available to them. To RSVP please call the Adams County Extension office at 601-445-8201.

David Carter is the director of the Adams County Extension Service. He can be reached at 601-445-8201.