Pieralisi Named Mississippi State Extension Cotton Specialist
April 20, 2020 
Brian Pieralisi
Brian Pieralisi is the new Mississippi State University (MSU) Extension Service cotton specialist.
Appointed April 1, Pieralisi succeeds Darrin Dodds, who now heads the university’s Department of Plant and Soil Sciences.
Pieralisi will work with growers to continue to refine cotton production practices to help increase profitability, including cotton variety testing and research and outreach on fertility management, weed control, irrigation, harvest aids and other areas of cotton production.
“Sustainability of our farming operations and our environment will be addressed through research and outreach efforts,” Dodds said. “Brian’s background of education and experience is very unique and will allow him to work with growers and students and provide multiple perspectives to each.”
A native of Leland, MS, Pieralisi earned a bachelor’s degree in agricultural pest management from MSU before returning to his family farm and earning a master’s degree in business administration from Delta State University. He returned to MSU to work on a doctoral degree in agronomy with an emphasis on nutrient management and soil fertility, which he will complete this summer.
“Our cotton producers have relied on the resources of MSU Extension for over a century when seeking research-based information and insight in refining their production and yields,” said MSU Extension director Gary Jackson. “Brian joins a long line of agronomists and row crop specialists who have been at the forefront of technological advances in agriculture, and our cotton growers will benefit greatly from having him in their corner.”
Based on information from Mississippi State University Extension Service
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