Specialists
Speaking
The art of irrigation begins now DR. JUSTIN CHLAPECKA MISSOURI Assistant Research Professor/ Rice Extension Specialist University of Missouri jchlapecka@missouri.edu The time we’ve all been waiting for is finally here. While I write these comments on March 29, there are already several thousand acres of rice planted across the Missouri bootheel. In fact, we got our first planting date study in the ground 12 days ago on March 17. To no one’s surprise, the seed still looks exactly the same as it did when it came out of the bag. Regardless, it’s nice to feel like we are making a little progress on the 2022 rice crop. There’s no better time than now to begin thinking about water management. Last year, about 30% of Missouri rice acres were furrow irrigated. When preparing to plant furrow-irrigated rice, there’s a fine line on bed size. We want to make sure there’s enough of a furrow that we don’t have water breaking over, but at the same time not too deep of a furrow so that water will not adequately wick across the beds. As if any of us didn’t know, it’s hard to move water upward — at least when we want it to! While beds should be prepared prior to planting on our silt loam soils, the heavier Sharkey clay seems to perform better when planted flat. Shallow water furrows can then be created sometime between emergence and the first irrigation event. It seems like the later the better within that time frame. The reason for this is simple. Heavy clay has plenty of potential to wick across. So even if we have a furrow that doesn’t work out, that can be overcome,
whereas on a silt loam or lighter soil, we don’t have that luxury. If you have a field where getting the water wicked across for your soybeans is difficult, you’re not going to enjoy furrow-irrigated rice. We’ve tried it multiple times. Unless you want 100 bu/ac rice, I’d suggest not trying furrow irrigation. Rice, especially hybrids, can take much greater water deficit stress than most of us realize. But ultimately, we’ve still got to get the water to it when summer comes along and those soils that seal over can become a real hassle. If we set ourselves up good on the front end, we’ll be much happier with a yield map lacking those dreaded red streaks. If you’ve got any questions, don’t hesitate to give me or your local expert a shout. As always, eat Missouri rice!
Efficient rice irrigation DR. JARROD HARDKE ARKANSAS Professor/Rice Extension Agronomist University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service jhardke@uada.edu By flood or by furrow, efficient irrigation will be an important key to rice profitability in 2022. Given the rise in input costs, minimizing our time and energy expenses related to irrigation should be an even bigger priority than usual. Multiple Inlet Rice Irrigation (MIRI) continues to be an underutilized practice. Many cite the cost of the pipe and the time required to install it as the main limitations to adopting the practice. However, the 2022 season is a prime opportunity to put this practice in place and reap the greatest benefits.
Arkansas rice specialist Dr. Jarrod Hardke said if you are not using sensors, a generalized irrigation approach could be to irrigate every three to five days on silt loams or every five to seven days on clays.
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RICE FARMING
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APRIL 2022
RICEFARMING.COM
