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THE RISE AND FALL OF JITNEY JUNGLEColumns
There are some business chains that you never see anymore. A grocery store that I can vaguely remember from my early childhood was Jitney Jungle. Jitney Jungle was a relatively short lived grocery store chain, compared...
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LEGACIES THAT SHAPED MCCOMBColumns
McComb's sense of mourning—representative, no doubt, of that felt across many Mississippi towns—has been especially heavy in recent days. However, I'll speak only to my hometown, a place that can't say goodbye to...
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FELDER'S DIVIDE & GROWColumns
Sounds mathematically impossible, but gardeners routinely divide to multiply. Using a few simple plant propagation tricks, we can increase what we start with and spread it to all corners of our gardens and beyond....
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Twists & Turns: Why Do We Love Flowers?Columns Headline
It is certainly time to lay the angry and frightening weather of March behind us and enjoy April in spring! I always look forward to the flowers putting on a special show because flowers uplift not only our gardens,...
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A Storm To RememberColumns Headline
I was only four months old in 1951 when one of the biggest Ice Storms in history hit our area. Of course I can't really remember that storm, but I feel as if I had lived through it because my parents and our neighbors...
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Hanging Baskets Add Color to Decks & PorchesColumns
There's something about a colorful hanging basket that makes a front porch feel welcoming. Whether it's part of a quiet morning with a cup of coffee or an evening visit from friends, those baskets overflowing with...
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Felder's Funky BloomsColumns
My nose alerted me the other morning that, at last, my voodoo lily had come into its fetid splendor. It, along with a handful of other more celebrated garden plants, has one of the most unusual flower types you will...
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Final Inning for McComb's Historic Ball FieldColumns
The hallowed park that housed much of McComb's youth baseball program for more than 70 years is now firmly at rest in the dustbins of history. Recently removed from the landscape were fences, flagpole, grandstands and...
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Felder's Heat SurvivorsColumns
Ever wonder if there are any flowers for a small space with grim growing conditions, that are nearly impossible to ignore to death? There actually are some that don't include the word "plastic." With spring flowers...
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Evergreen Shrub Temple Bells Shines in the SpringColumns
Sometimes it seems that spring is all about the flowers, but trees and shrubs play a significant role in the landscape waking up from winter. At my house, an early bloomer I look forward to seeing each year is Temple...
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Mississippi Made Exhibit Tells State's Story at Two Mississippi MuseumsColumns
The finest examples of homegrown Mississippi craftsmanship and productivity are on display at Two Museums in Jackson. Residents and visitors alike can explore achievements that reflect the state's ingenuity dating to...
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Felder's Upward GardensColumns
From overarching arbors and ornate pillars to flowering vine teepees, vertical structures are hallmarks of good garden design. They lift eyes and spirits, provide protection from the sun, and support vines for seasonal...
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You Don't Own MeColumns Editorial
Politicians tax what we earn, regulate what we build and often decide what we can do with our bodies and our money. I like to think I own myself. But politicians increasingly act as if they do. "People should not have...
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Felder's Garden ShortcutsColumns
Of the several repetitive garden chores I was responsible for as a teenager are never-ending Sisyphean tasks I swore I would not do when I grew up, three in particular irritated me: Mowing grass, hoeing garden rows, and...
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The Economists Who Got It RightColumns Editorial
Politicians say they can "make the economy work better." I once believed they could. But years of reporting taught me that politicians' attempts to "fix" the economy usually make things worse. Twenty years ago,...
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Life & Death of Warner Alford at Ole MissColumns Headline
Warner Alford came from Mississippi royalty, but he didn't play like it. As an all-around player at McComb High School in the 1950s and later as an offensive guard on some of Ole Miss' greatest football teams, he, as...
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Felder's Native MythColumns
Native may be the new buzzword for choosing landscape plants, but it often gets in the way of good gardening. Not knocking native plants; after all, this past president of the Mississippi Native Plant Society grows and...
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Evil MeatColumns Editorial Political
Do you eat steak? You're killing the planet! So say climate activists. Is it true? Probably not. Vox warns that beef is the "worst thing we eat when it comes to global warming." The World Economic Forum, which says it's...
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Consequences Breed FiresColumns Editorial Political
Last week Iran launched two intermediate-range ballistic missiles toward Diego Garcia, a key U.S.-U.K. base in the Indian Ocean 2,500 miles away. Even though neither missile reached its target, the range of these...
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Mississippi's Greatest Bookman: Fred Cecil Smith (1953-2026) of Jackson's Choctaw Books RememberedColumns Headline
Fred Cecil Smith, 72, of Starkville, Mississippi, a nationally respected antiquarian bookseller and archivist, passed away after a long battle with cancer on February 28, 2026 at his home surrounded by his family. The...
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Data Centers Gold Rush: Mississippi's ReadinessColumns
Whether Mississippi, Georgia or Northern Virginia is the national pacesetter in obtaining development promises from data center companies, as all three states claim, each is glowing, if not with electricity, certainly...
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Felder's Woodland WondersColumns
Even in this super-colorful Spring time, let's slow down to appreciate a handful of peculiar, often underappreciated oddities that adorn other landscape plants. One is the velvety mat of emerald-green moss, which grows...
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The Reading WarsColumns Editorial Political
"My child can't read!" That's become a common complaint from parents. Why? It might be because kids are distracted by social media and video games. But I think it's also because reading instruction became lazy and...
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Signs of the TimesColumns Editorial Political
As we have approached Resurrection Sunday aka Easter this year, I've seen many advertisements about specials in theaters on television and online about Jesus's life, death, and resurrection. Over the past year or so...
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