C O U R S E Y • H A R R E L L S F E R R Y • M I L L E R V I L L E • O L D J E F F E R S O N • PA R K V I E W • S H E N A N D O A H • T I G E R B E N D • W H I T E O A K
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W e d n e s d ay, F e b r u a ry 19, 2025
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LSU AGCENTER PHOTO
Make sure cuttings have at least four to five buds.
Getting figgy with it
Pass down these family ‘heirlooms’ with easy propagation process Figs are one of the most common fruit trees you’ll find growing in Louisiana backyards. And for many of these fig trees, there’s a name and face and a personal back story behind them. That’s because figs are a popular passalong plant. That means they were grown usGARDEN ing cuttings taken NEWS from older trees or those belonging to family and friends. Whether you want to start a new fig tree to continue the lineage of a beloved heirloom specimen or share cuttings with fellow gardeners — or if you are simply interested in trying your hand at plant propagation — the process is easy. And winter is the perfect time to do it, according to Michael Polozola, LSU AgCenter fruit and nut specialist. “Figs are forgiving,” he said. “You can do it most of the year, but you’re going to have the best results during their dormancy in December, January and February.” The first step is to locate a healthy mother plant. “You want one that you’ve been fertilizing regularly, that you’ve been pruning so it’s growing vigorously,” Polozola said. “Ensure that it’s getting water, especially during dry periods so that you have consistent, good, vigorous growth.” Next, you’ll need to cut off a piece of a tree branch. Look at the newer growth at the ends of the branches and try to find a section that is the diameter of a pencil to slightly thicker, somewhere around the size of a permanent marker. “A little bit bigger is going to have more carbohydrates. It’s going to be stronger and root better for you,” Polozola said. Just don’t go too big. Thicker cuttings can struggle to root, as can older parts of the branch farther down that have a gray or tan coloring. Now, get your pruners ready. Count at least four to five buds down from the tip of the branch you’ve selected. These buds are where the roots for your new tree will eventually form. Make a cut just below a bud at an angle. And voilà: You should have a cutting that is a few inches long. You may want to repeat this process a few times to give yourself more than one cutting to work with. Some people like to remove the terminal bud at the very tip of the cutting, Polozola said, as it is believed to slow rooting. But it’s not necessary. Stick your cuttings about an inch deep — at least one or two buds should be buried — in potting mix in small containers. And that’s it! Just keep the cuttings watered and protected from freezing temperatures, and within a year, they should sprout a few branches and reach a foot or so tall. Be sure to upsize the containers as needed. Figs are native to the warm
ä See FIGS, page 2G
STAFF PHOTOS BY JAVIER GALLEGOS
Maintenance superintendent Tony Barber gives a tour of the bottling facilities at the LSU AgCenter Food Innovation Institute’s Sensory Services Lab and explains how tenants can produce and bottle products at LSU.
From popcorn to bacon, LSU’s Food Innovation lab sends new products to Louisiana grocery stores BY SERENA PUANG Staff writer
Witoon Prinyawiwatkul, from left, professor and sensory scientist; Ashley Gutierrez, assistant director; and Dr. Achyut Adhikari, interim director, help business owners make informed decisions about consumer perceptions through food testing at the LSU AgCenter Food Innovation Institute. The sensory booths behind them are where volunteers eat the products FOODii is testing. Andrea Armstrong, FOODii facility coordinator, points to Tre’s Street Sauce, one of her favorite products produced at the lab.
How much of a botched batch of hot sauce can a company put in a new bottle before consumers begin to notice a difference? How much salt can be removed from lowsodium mayonnaise before people start to complain? Will the new recipe for a product feel “new and improved” to people? These are the kinds of questions that researchers help answer at the LSU AgCenter Food Innovation Institute’s Sensory Services Lab. With the help of students and volunteers from across the city, researchers test new products before they go to market. “Our job is to run the study,” said Witoon Prinyawiwatkul, professor and sensory scientist. “We obtain the data, we interpret the data, but we are not making recommendations — whether you should launch your product or not is not our job, because it’s risky.” Rather, the lab seeks to answer specific questions that can help business owners make informed decisions about consumer perceptions. It allows companies to test a new recipe for a product before launch to see if people like it. Maybe they used a different part of the fish in a canned tuna product and want to know if consumers can tell. Perhaps they want information about what their potential customer base would pay for the product.
ä See LAB, page 2G