Proposal Funded for Capacity-Building Grants Research, Alcorn State and N C A & T to Conduct Research
The Capacity-Building Grants Research Proposal submitted jointly by Alcorn State University and North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University has been funded for a total of $500,632.00 by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) USDA, according Dr. Patrick E. Igbokwe.
Dr. Igbokwe, director of the Alcorn State University Experiment Station and professor of agriculture in the School of Agriculture, Research, Extension and Applied Sciences at Alcorn, will serve as the principal investigator.
The three-year research proposal, entitled “Increasing Agricultural Profitability through Sustainable Year-Round Intercropping and Utilization of Mushroom and Companion Crops,” will be used to determine the impact of year-round intercropping mushrooms with their respective vegetable and herb companions on crop yield potential and quality, soil fertility and biodiversity, and mushroom consumption as well as the quality of life of stakeholders in Mississippi and North Carolina.
The economic significance of this mushroom, vegetable, and herb intercropping system will also be determined in selected farms throughout Mississippi and North Carolina.
“The grant will assist us in helping limited-resource farmers increase their income through alternative crops. With this particular project we will teach farmers how to grow mushrooms outside on blocks as well as on logs,” Dr. Igbokwe said.
Dr. Omonanghe Isikhuemhen, professor of microbiology in the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Design at North Carolina A & T, will serve as the co-principal investigator.
For additional information, contact Dr. Patrick E. Igbokwe at (601) 877-6542 or [email protected], or Dr. Omoanghe Isikhuemhen, at (336)-285-4841, or [email protected].
