A new Web site and interactive learning promises a new way of doing business for the U.S. Cooperative Extension Service. Cotton eXtension initiative, which will be launched Jan. 8 at the 2008 Beltwide Cotton Conferences in Nashville, TN, will be one of many Web communities within a national eXtension initiative which has been signed onto by each land-grant university.

Cotton eXtension “will serve as a reference for all phases of cotton production, and address issues of pressing importance,” says Sandy Stewart, Louisiana Extension cotton specialist. “It will be a one-stop place to access individual state pest management recommendations, variety trial information and Extension newsletters.”

Cotton eXtension is led by Extension cotton specialists across the nation who are currently generating content for the interactive site. The service is free and will include a frequently-asked-questions feature and a searchable database. The national site is at www.extension.org.