When you buy something at the store, you have a pretty good idea of what you’re getting no matter where you buy it — a Coke is a Coke, Oreos are Oreos — and whether you buy them in Atlanta or Seattle doesn’t really change what you get. Farmers are in a similar position when they choose what to plant, but in the burgeoning field of industrial hemp, it turns out that things are much more complicated.

The emergence of Brood X exceeded expectations in north Georgia, as those of us who happen to reside in the “cicada zone” observed droves of periodical cicadas during the peak of the event. Over the past weeks, the song of the male periodical cicada has faded and fewer of these fascinating insects remain, but a sign of their passing is still evident.

The Summer Olympics may be in Japan this year, but Team USA was on home turf when they took the field for today’s Opening Ceremony. The Japan National Stadium’s field is currently sodded with TifSport bermudagrass, developed in south Georgia. One of many grass varieties created and tested at the University of Georgia’s Tifton Campus, TifSport is a dense, medium- to fine-textured grass bred to withstand the high traffic sports fields see while tolerating herbicides.

After being postponed last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 Tokyo Olympics are set to move forward at full speed starting Friday, July 23, when people from all over the world will tune in to watch the best of the best compete for gold in Japan.

Summer in Georgia yields a bounty of fresh fruit and vegetables. In fact, Georgia is one of the top producers of cantaloupe in the U.S., and Georgia-grown watermelons and cantaloupes are the stars of summer grocery stores and farmers markets.

Organizational and instructional communication specialist Jennifer Waldeck has been named head of the Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication (ALEC) in the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences beginning July 1. Waldeck most recently served as the associate dean for academic programming and faculty affairs for the School of Communication at Chapman University.

What Joseph Egloff began as a “little hobby” in 2011 is now a full-time cattle ranch with a meat packing plant that serves customers from Florida to North Carolina.

The University of Georgia Alumni Association has unveiled the 40 Under 40 Class of 2021. This program celebrates the personal, professional and philanthropic achievements of successful UGA graduates under the age of 40. The honorees will be recognized during the 11th annual 40 Under 40 Awards Luncheon Sept. 10 in the Tate Student Center on campus. 

Thanks to a prize-winning chicken coop design by 4-H and FFA students from Warren County, Georgia’s newly established First Flock now has a stately home on the 18-acre grounds of Governor’s Mansion in Atlanta.