State

Stickers, also known as stickerweed, spurweed and burweed, germinate in lawns in the fall and produce painful stickers in the spring. (Photo by Ron Strahan/LSU AgCenter)

Stickers, also known as stickerweed, spurweed and burweed, germinate in lawns in the fall and produce painful stickers in the spring. (Photo by Ron Strahan/LSU AgCenter)

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Stop stickerweed before it’s too late

Heather Kirk-Ballard / LSU AgCenter horticulturist
Friday, October 28, 2022
Nothing spoils a nice barefooted walk through the lawn more than stickerweed. Also known as spurweed, stickers or burweed, seeds germinate in the fall and winter months in lawns, particularly where the turf is thin or patchy. When lawns go dormant in the winter, weed problems become evident.

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Pete, six or seven ghosts, and me

Jim Bradshaw
Friday, October 28, 2022
Here is why I believe there may be something to at least some of the ghost stories that we hear at this time of year. In 1998, photographer Pete Piazza and I spent weeks driving all across south Louisiana, gathering material and taking photographs for the book Our Acadiana.

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Louisiana’s unemployment rate continues to fall

Harlan Kirgan
Friday, October 21, 2022
Data released Friday by the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that Louisiana’s September 2022 seasonally adjusted unemployment rate is 3.4 percent. This is the lowest rate in the state’s history and the fourth consecutive month with a new record.

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Annual Acadiana Food & Wine Soiree includes raffle for 52 weeks of dining

Harlan Kirgan
Friday, October 21, 2022
The Louisiana Restaurant Association’s (LRA) Acadiana Chapter and the University of Louisiana at Lafayette’s (ULL) Department of Hospitality Management will be holding the 4th annual Food & Wine Soiree from 6 to 9 p.m. at the ULL Alumni Center,600 E St Mary Blvd, Lafayette.
Swamp sunflower is in full bloom in fall and dots Louisiana natural landscapes. (Photo by Anna Ribbeck/LSU AgCenter)

Swamp sunflower is in full bloom in fall and dots Louisiana natural landscapes. (Photo by Anna Ribbeck/LSU AgCenter)

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Cheer up with the swamp sunflower

Harlan Kirgan
Friday, October 21, 2022
Bright and cheery yellow sunflowers are popping up everywhere — in ditches along roadways, in open fields, along fence lines and from woodlands to swampy areas. Spread among other native species such as goldenrod (Solidago spp.
Leslie Turk

Leslie Turk

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Eunice native Leslie Turk honored as one of 11 Women Who Mean Business

Raquel Villatoro / The Acadiana Advocate
Friday, October 21, 2022
Editor’s note: This was in a series on the 11 chosen as part of the annual Women Who Mean Business awards by the United Way of Acadiana. Leslie Turk did not think she would be an editor. Her dream was to do investigative reporting.

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63% Citizens rate increase approved

Harlan Kirgan
Friday, October 14, 2022
The Louisiana Department of Insurance (LDI) has approved Louisiana Citizens’ request for a 63% rate increase on its residential property insurance policies beginning Jan. 1, 2023. The rate increase will not affect Citizens’ current policyholders until they renew their policy after that date.
Goldenrod produces an abundance of gorgeous golden flowers. Photo by Heather Kirk-Ballard/LSU AgCenter

Goldenrod produces an abundance of gorgeous golden flowers. Photo by Heather Kirk-Ballard/LSU AgCenter

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‘Tis the season for sneezing

Harlan Kirgan
Friday, October 14, 2022
If you are like me, you suffer from seasonal allergies — sneezing, headaches, itchy eyes and coughing, all due to pollen from local, native plants that bloom in autumn. Among many culprits, two of the most common are goldenrod and ragweed.

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Lights also brought shadows

Jim Bradshaw
Friday, October 14, 2022
By 1900, communities across south Louisiana were beginning to prosper again after the vicissitudes of the Civil War. Growing commerce brought new comforts that we take for granted today. Railroads and telegraph lines were bringing speedier communications between our towns for better or for worse.