Perceptions of Irrigation Water Management Practices in the Mississippi Delta

The Mississippi River Valley Alluvial Aquifer (MRVAA) is being depleted, and practices that improve water stewardship have been developed to reduce drawdown. This study assesses how Mississippi Delta producers changed their perceptions of these practices over time. The analysis employs data from two surveys carried-out in 2012 and 2014 of all Mississippi permittees who held an agricultural well permit drawing from the MRVAA. Focusing on water-saving practices, this study found that producer perception of the usability of flowmeters improved over time. About 80% and 90% more producers growing corn and soybeans, respectively, felt that computerized hole selection was highly efficient. In 2014, 38% of corn and 35% of soybean producers believed that shortened furrow length was a highly efficient practice—up from 21% in corn and 24% in soybean producers in 2012. Approval of irrigation automation, moisture probes, and other irrigation technology rose from 75%of producers in 2012 to 88% by 2014. Favorability toward water-saving practices increased overall between the survey years.

A Quantitative Review of Irrigation Development in the Yazoo–Mississippi Delta from 1991 to 2020

The Yazoo–Mississippi Delta is one of the regions within the Lower Mississippi River Basin where substantial irrigation development and consequent groundwater depletion have occurred over the past three decades. To describe this irrigation development, a study was conducted to analyze existing geospatial datasets and to synthesize the results with those of past government surveys. The effort produced a quantitative review characterizing three aspects of irrigation development from 1991 to 2020. First, the expansion of irrigated area was tracked in terms of absolute area and in terms of fraction relative to total land or cropland area. Second, trends in irrigated land cover were traced in terms of irrigated crop mix, irrigated fractions of main crops, and comparisons with non-irrigated land. Third, changes in irrigation systems were examined in terms of water sources, energy sources, and application methods. Original findings of this study for the end of 2020 included moderate positive spatial autocorrelation in the density of irrigated areas; a higher irrigated crop preference for soybean and rice over cotton and corn in highly hydric soils; and 91% and 3% of permitted areas studied being respectively under groundwater withdrawal permits exclusively and under surface water diversion permits exclusively. By compiling such information, this paper can serve as a convenient reference on the recent history and status of irrigation development in the Yazoo–Mississippi Delta.

Grant’s North Mississippi Campaign, Chickasaw Bayou, and the Bottomlands

Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant’s North Mississippi Campaign (November 1862 until January 1863) planted a powerful Federal army only a few miles north of Vicksburg. The most important Confederate stronghold on the Mississippi River, Vicksburg was the key to control of the valley that split the Confederacy in two. Grant failed to capture it, but he opened a two-hundred-mile stretch of the valley from Memphis to Vicksburg for federal exploitation. From January to the end of April 1863, during the Bottomlands phase of Grant’s campaign, his men confiscated food and animals from the region, collected slaves as laborers and soldiers, and cared for Black women and children. Federal agents worked abandoned plantations with refugee Black labor. Temporarily stymied in capturing Vicksburg, the Federals reaped benefits from the fertile Mississippi Delta land they occupied, broke down the institution of slavery, and made effective Lincoln’s new directions in war policy.

Improving the function of a high obesity program: Findings from community-engaged Mississippi Delta focus groups

In this policy and practice brief, Mississippi State University Extension Services applies a coalition-driven approach to addressing the prevalence of obesity in communities in the Mississippi Delta through its High Obesity Program, funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Focus groups were conducted with coalition members from six counties to evaluate efforts by this program. The evaluation team used content and thematic analysis to report on coalition activities. Some of the barriers coalition members identified were limited access to healthy foods and the need for more assistance from program staff. Action items were developed and implemented in response to focus group feedback. These items included enhanced communication tools and coalition trainings. This evaluation brief describes some of the common challenges in coalition building and innovative ways to improve them. Our focus group findings are also valuable to public health scientists and practitioners working in rural communities.

Opportunities for Partnership in Local Food Procurement: Mississippi Delta Schools

Objectives Procuring food for school meals is costly in a region like the fertile MS Delta. Hence, efforts to procure foods locally may yield substantial benefits in terms of economic return to the area and positive impacts on children's diets. The objective of this study was to determine food procurement amounts in two Mississippi Delta school districts, one participating in the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (FFVP) and illustrate potential economic impacts of purchasing local. Methods Procurement data from two Mississippi Delta school districts, academic years 2018–2019 and 2019–2020, were compiled and grouped into 8 food categories. The food categories were fruits, vegetables, grains, protein, dairy, added sugars, fats, and miscellaneous. Amounts of procured foods were converted to weight in pounds and cost in dollars. Results For the FFVP district, dairy accounted for the largest cost (34%) followed by protein (23%), grains (19%), fruits (13%), and vegetables (10%) in 2018–2019. In 2019–2020, grains accounted for the largest cost (26%) followed by fruit (20%), protein (19%), and vegetables (12%). For the non-FFVP district, protein accounted for the largest cost (25%) followed by grains (24%), dairy (18%), fruits (14%), and vegetables (14%) in 2018–2019. In 2019–2020, grains accounted for the largest cost (26%) followed by protein (24%), dairy (19%), fruits (16%), and vegetables (11%). Conclusions Although school districts purchase substantial amounts of dairy, grains, protein, fruits and vegetables, very little if any is procured locally. Encouraging school food service administrators to connect with and purchase foods from local farmers may provide an economic boost to the agricultural community and will facilitate serving fresh, nutrient rich foods, such as fruits and vegetables, to school children. Funding Sources This research was funded by the USDA Agricultural Research Service.

Water Use Efficiencies of Different Maturity Group Soybean Cultivars in the Humid Mississippi Delta

Introducing alternative cultivars with enhanced water use efficiencies can help alleviate pressure on groundwater for crop irrigations in Mississippi (MS) Delta. A two-year field study was conducted in 2019–2020 to compare the water use efficiencies (WUE) of recently released and pre-released soybean {Glycine max (L.) Merr.} cultivars in maturity group (MG) III (‘P37A78’, ‘LG03-4561-14’), IV (‘Dyna-gro 4516x’, ‘DS25-1, DT97-4290’), and V (‘S12-1362’, ‘S14-16306’) in the MS Delta. The experimental design was a split-plot with cultivar as the first factor and the second factor was water variant irrigation (IR) and no irrigation (RF, rainfed), replicated three times. The MG IV cultivar Dyna-gro 4516x recorded the highest grain yield and WUE: grain yields were 4.58 Mg ha−1 and 3.89 Mg ha−1 under IR and RF, respectively in 2019, and 4.74 Mg ha−1 and 4.35 Mg ha−1 in 2020. The WUE were 7.2 and 6.9 kg ha−1 mm−1, respectively, in 2019 under IR and RF, and 13.4 and 16.9 kg ha−1 mm−1 in 2020. The data reveals that ‘Dyna-gro 4516x’ (MG IV), ‘LG03-4561-14’ (MG III), and ‘P37A78’ (MG III) are best adapted to the early soybean production system (ESPS) in MS Delta region for sustainable production for conserving water resources.

Three datasets for nutrition environment measures of food outlets located in the Lower Mississippi Delta region of the United States

This data note provides details of a research database containing 266 food outlets located in five rural towns in the Lower Mississippi Delta region of Mississippi, whose nutrition environments were measured from 2016 to 2018. The food outlet types include grocery stores, convenience stores, full-service restaurants, and fast food restaurants. The purpose of this publication is to describe the three datasets for external researchers who may be interested in making use of them. The datasets are available from the USDA National Agricultural Library’s Ag Data Commons under a CC0 1.0 Universal License: https://doi.org/10.15482/USDA.ADC/1503704.