The 60th Southern Hardwood Forest Research Group annual meeting will be Feb. 21 at the Capps Entrepreneurial Center, Delta Branch Experiment Station in Stoneville, Miss. The program starts at 8 a.m. Registration begins at 7:30 a.m.

The theme of the program is: Mid Rotation Management of Hardwood Stands. Presentations addressing the theme will be made by Dr. Allan Houston, research professor, Forest and Wildlife Biology, Department of Forestry, Wildlife and Fisheries, University of Tennessee, Ames Plantation, and Dr. Steve Meadows, research forester, Stoneville, Miss. Dr. Brian Lockhart, Research Forester, Stoneville, Miss will present a brief history of the Southern Hardwood Forest Research Group to commemorate its 60^th year. Drs. Ray Souter, Paul Hamel, Margaret Devall, and Dan Marion, staff scientists with the Center for Bottomland Hardwoods Research will report on their current research projects.

Following a lunch catered on-site, Chip Morgan, executive vice president of Delta Council, will report on congressional support for hardwood research in the present fiscal and political atmosphere. Dr. Greg Ruark, assistant director for Research at the Southern Research Station, will give his perspective on support for bottomland hardwoods and related stream research conducted by the Center, and Dr. Ted Leininger, project leader, will provide an update on recent research accomplishments at the Center.

The meeting is approved for 5.0 CFE Contact Hours in Category 1-CF. Copies of the CFE contact hour notice will be available at the registration desk, as will a signup sheet for those wanting to receive credit for this meeting.

For the third year, a graduate student poster session and competition will be open to currently enrolled M.S. or Ph.D. students working on original research that investigates some aspect of Southern hardwood forestry. Competition guidelines and an entry form are available at: http://www.deltacouncil.net/southern-hardwoods.html.

Submissions must be received by 5 p.m., Feb. 15. Scientific contributions from non-students are also welcomed. Non-student attendees wishing to present a poster should send the title, author(s) and abstract to Dr. Ted Leininger ([email protected]) as soon as possible to reserve a spot.

For additional information, contact Penny Byler at (662) 686-3154 or Brenda Marshall at (662) 686-3152.