Rice farming april 2017 by One Grower Publishing

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ONE GROWER PUBLISHING, LLC

PROFITABLE PRODUCTION STRATEGIES

APRIL 2017

Row rice continues to make inroads Tadpole shrimp woes expand in California

A ‘ducky’ partnership Conservation program draws from public, private support

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www.ricefarming.com

April 2017

COLUMNS

Vol. 51, No. 5

COV ER STORY

4 From The Editor

Retiring rice leadership ‘dad’ leaves huge boots to fill

6 USA Rice Update USA Rice is developing marketing plans to move the rice you will grow.

DEPA RTM EN TS 18 Specialists Speaking Early season water management is critical for optimizing yield

A ‘ducky’ partnership

ON THE COVER: Michael Fruge (left) and his father, Raymond, show how easy it is to install a flow meter to measure water use. The device is part of a Regional Conservation Partnership Program. Photo by Vicky Boyd

Rice-focused conservation program draws from public and private funding to help growers install on-the-ground improvements.

FEATUR ES 8

Sign up for the monthly e-newsletter at ricefarming.com to have exclusive industry news and content delivered directly to your inbox.

A cultural evolution Row rice continues to make inroads as growers seek ways to reduce labor and equipment costs.

Pint-sized pests Tadpole shrimp problems seem to be on the upswing in California rice fields.

GET CONNECTED Stay up-to-date with the latest from Rice Farming. www.facebook.com/ ricefarming1 Follow us on Twitter: @RiceFarming Subscribe to One Grower Publishing on YouTube

mina Awards No 2017 Rice

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A ‘ducky’ partnership Rice-focused conservation program draws from public and private funding to help growers install on-the-ground improvements. By Vicky Boyd Editor

Public-private partnership The U.S. Department of Agriculture created the Regional Conservation Partnership Program to help provide financial assistance for producers within a specific region who are interested in adding conservation structures and practices to their operations. Rather than reinvent the wheel, RCPP draws from the Natural Re-

RICE FARMING • APRIL 2017

VICKY BOYD

ecognizing that sustainability is gaining importance among rice buyers, producer Michael Fruge wanted to get ahead of the curve. The Eunice, La., rice and soybean grower signed up through the Regional Conservation Partnership Program in 2016 for financial assistance with installing conservation structures and implementing conservation practices on his farm. “I’ve spent a lot of time in Texas with all of their water issues, and a lot of guys have told us (here in Louisiana) that we need to be proactive,” says Fruge, also president of the Louisiana Rice Growers Association. “They (the state) have already had discussions about charging us for groundwater use although they haven’t moved forward with it yet. If any of this stuff can give us a way to use less water and use it more efficiently, then I’m for it.” But Fruge is quick to point out that if the technology doesn’t prove to be economically sustainable, he will think twice about continuing to use it. “This side-inlet (irrigation) and flow meters—you’ve got to have a way to pay for it,” Fruge says. He is not alone in embracing conservation as rice producers in Louisiana have signed 32 contracts representing about 30,000 acres under the national RCPP during the past year, says Kyle Soileau, Ducks Unlimited rice stewardship coordinator based in Lafayette, La. Producer Michael Fruge has installed flow meters and records his water use as part of a rice-focused conservation program.

source Conservation Service’s existing Environmental Quality Incentive Program and Conservation Stewardship Program. The Rice Stewardship Partnership, led by USA Rice and DU, has harnessed RCPP funding. Joining the two groups are more than 40 other industry partners.

Along with a regional focus, the rice program involves commodity-specific conservation efforts. The national RCPP has three goals that all projects should meet to qualify for funding: improve water use, nutrient management and therefore water quality, and wildlife habitat, Soileau says. RICEFARMING.COM

MIKE CHECKETT

In return for financial assistance from NRCS, rice producers agree to plug drains in their rice fields to capture rain and create winter waterfowl habitat.

Between July 1, 2015, and June 20, 2016, the first full year of implementation, the effort provided about $8.3 million toward about 220 contracts for conservation measures covering more than 92,100 acres, according to the Rice Stewardship annual report. Similar participation is expected for the 2016-17. “The Rice Stewardship partners, along with producers, applaud the National Resources Conservation Service for its vision and creation of RCPP,” says Scott Manley, DU director of conservation programs in Ridgeland, Miss. Since its inception, Rice Stewardship and its the rice-focused RCPP have seen strong grower interest, he says. John Hankins, Rice Stewardship Partnership coordinator with USA Rice in Little Rock, Ark., agrees. “This is all rice-focused funding,” he says. “If they apply for funding, it’s targeted to rice growers so it takes away a lot of competition within other NRCS programs. It increases their ability to be funded by a significant percentage, sometimes by double, so you are giving them an extra pot of funding that wouldn’t be there had we not gone out there to get it.” Hankins says the program also is deTwitter: @RiceFarming

signed to encourage use of techniques that can save inputs and save money, which makes the operations more profitable. “We’re taking some of the risk out of that change, so we’re helping facilitate change,” he says. “This funding goes directly to changes on the ground, so we’re encouraging change at the field level.” State efforts, too In addition to national rice efforts, some states also have secured additional funding for local efforts. In Louisiana, for example, what folks call the LA-1 RCPP is a rice stewardship program with $800,000 in producer financial assistance. It addresses water quality, water quantity and wildlife habitat in four impacted micro-watersheds in Acadia, Calcasieu, St. Landry and Vermillion parishes. With $600,000 of financial assistance available, the LA-2 RCPP is a water quality project focused on nutrient management. Soileau says his goal for LA-2 is to sign up growers representing about 20,000 acres. Based on grower visits and sign-up sheets, he already has 100,000 acres’ worth of interest. California also has a state-based RCPP led by the California Rice Commission.

The RCPP conservation funding was part of the 2014 Farm Bill. As the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Congress begin work on the 2018 law, Manley says he believes they will continue to include a strong conservation focus. Rice Stewardship financial supporters include the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Walmart Foundation, the Mosaic Company Foundation, Chevron U.S.A., Freeport-McMoRan Foundation, Irene W. and C.B. Pennington Foundation, RiceTec, BASF, Riviana Foods Inc., Delta Plastics, Wells Fargo, Farmers Rice Milling Co., Horizon Ag, Turner’s Creek & Bombay Hook Farms, MacDon Industries, Dow AgroSciences and Ducks Unlimited’s major sponsors.

“Whether it’s called RCPP or called something else, rice and its environmental and wildlife benefits will always be ripe to take advantage of conservation initiative funding through USDA,” he says. All in the family Fruge’s father, Raymond Fruge, who also farms rice near Eunice, has been a strong proponent of conservation for more than a decade. The senior Fruge signed one of the first Environmental APRIL 2017 • RICE FARMING

PHOTOS BY VICKY BOYD

Eunice, La., rice farmers Michael Fruge (left) and his father, Raymond, show how easy it is to attach a flow meter to their well outlet.

Quality Incentive Program contracts in the area 15 years ago. He also is in the last year of a five-year Conservation Stewardship Program contract. Through financial assistance administered by the NRCS, Raymond Fruge has installed several drop pipes in his fields and laser leveled other fields. The drop pipes help reduce erosion whereas laser leveling helps improve water-use uniformity and efficiency. Through RCPP, Raymond Fruge has added additional pipe drops to his fields. He also had about 300 acres grid soil sampled in 2016. The sampling data can be used to create variable-rate nutrient prescriptions for each field. That same data can guide a fertilizer spreader’s variable-rate controller so it applies nutrients to zones that are lacking and not to zones that are sufficient. In return for RCPP financial assistance, Fruge agrees to plug drains in his fields during the late fall and winter to capture rainfall and provide winter waterfowl habitat. As part of the local nutrient-management effort, Michael Fruge already has had about 200 acres grid sampled. “If it calls for it, we’ll use a variable-rate program,” he says. “We did some last year

RICE FARMING • APRIL 2017

A flow meter measures water quantity as it turns the propeller-like device in the center.

but not under RCPP—they were fields I was having trouble with.” He had phosphorus and zinc applied using variable rate by a custom applicator. After just one season, Fruge says it’s too early to tell what type of improvements the precision application provided. Irrigation water management Under the national RCPP, irrigation

management has three levels of participation: low, intermediate and high. The younger Fruge signed up for the intermediate program, which also involves onfarm weather stations and flow meters. The weather stations, costing about $1,600 apiece, are on two different farms about 3 miles apart and record temperature, relative humidity, rainfall and evapotranspiration. Despite their proximity, Fruge says the weather station data varies widely. He can access the information remotely using a laptop, tablet or smartphone and uses it, along with an irrigation scheduling program, to determine how much water to apply. As part of Fruge’s agreement, he also records information from the flow meters—gallons per minute and the duration of the pump run—each time he adds water to a field. This season, he also plans to use multiple-inlet rice irrigation on two fields. The technology doesn’t fall under RCPP, but Fruge says DU conservation planner Keith Latiolais is interested in the practice and plans to help him work out the bugs. Studies conducted by the University of Arkansas show MIRI can help growers reduce water use by up to 25 percent compared with conventional irrigation. RICEFARMING.COM

DENNIS BURNS, LSU AGCENTER

Aerial assistance Drones provide a better overview of a ﬁeld or crop from the air, but they don’t replace boots on the ground for scouting. By Bruce Schultz

Two people for a drone survey Jimmy Flanagan, LSU AgCenter county agent in St. Mary Parish, says he recommends two people for conducting a drone survey: one to fly the aircraft and another to watch the aircraft and a computer monitor that provides details on the drone’s progress. R.L. Frazier, LSU AgCenter county agent in Madison Parish, says his crashes occurred when he was working alone. Frazier says he has worked with a camera that makes images with Normalized Difference Vegetation Index called NDVI to help reveal disease, insect and nematode damage. But many farmers won’t have time to learn how to use the devices. A basic drone can cost $800 to $1,000, says AgCenter agricultural engineer Randy Price. Software to process images can cost $2,000 to $3,500 and requires large-capacity computers. Fixed-wing aircraft often are better suited for field work, with the capability of covering 100-200 acres per flight, Price says. Federal regulations require licensing of drones, and commercial drone operators must undergo additional training to learn airspace protocol and how pilots communicate, he says. TWITTER: @RICEFARMING

RANDY PRICE/LSU AGCENTER

rones provide an aerial view of a crop’s progress and health, but they won’t replace scouting ﬁelds on foot, Louisiana State University AgCenter researchers advised during a recent drone workshop at the Dean Lee Research Station near Alexandria. Dennis Burns, LSU AgCenter county agent in Tensas Parish, says insects can’t be detected by air unless crop damage is extensive. “The images are only going to show so much,” he says. Thermal cameras provide imaging that reveals more information than other imaging devices. Thermal cameras are expensive, but they are becoming more affordable, Burns says. Stitching several hundred photos together from a ﬂight can take two to three hours of computer processing, he says. And obtaining good images requires uniform light with no spotty cloud cover. Participants at the recent LSU AgCenter drone workshop are photographed by a drone flying over the Dean Lee Research Station near Alexandria.

Grower interest Farmer George LaCour of Pointe Coupee Parish says he wants to get a drone to monitor his irrigation system. He says he often has to spend several hours walking through fields to fix plastic pipe that moves water to his crops. Forestry consultant Danny Wells, who has a commercial drone business, says he attended the workshop to learn about programming routes for his drones instead of flying the aircraft by sight. “I do logging inspections to see if they finished a logging job or to see if they got all the timber,” he says. Drones also allow him to survey damage from fire or insects. “You can get a much better picture and the extent of damage instead of walking,” Wells says. Bruce Schultz is an assistant communications specialist with the LSU AgCenter in Crowley, La. He may be reached at BSchultz@ agcenter.lsu.edu. APRIL 2017 • RICE FARMING

Pint-sized pests Tadpole shrimp problems seem to be on the upswing in California rice fields. By Luis Espino

Susceptible rice stages The most susceptible stage of rice seedlings is while the coleoptile and radicle are emerging. TPS seem to prefer to feed on the white structures coming out of the seed. If the coleoptile or the radicle is consumed, the rice seedling is killed and will not get established. By the time the coleoptile turns into a green spike, TPS will prefer to feed on the growing roots. As TPS grow, they can uproot seedlings. But once a seedling’s root is well established, the likelihood of this happening is reduced. Scouting for TPS presence during the period of rice germination is important to avoid significant stand reductions. One question I have been asked several times is at what size can TPS start injuring rice. Laboratory experiments I have conducted have shown TPS can injure rice when their shell is about half the size of a rice seed. In my experience, this is about the time when TPS can be detected in the flood water. TPS eggs hatch two to three days after they have been hydrated, but the young TPS are so small they cannot be seen with the naked eye in the flood water. Tadpole shrimp develop quickly, and after a few days they are

RICE FARMING • APRIL 2017

PHOTOS BY DR. LUIS ESPINO

adpole shrimp (TPS) is a problem that seems to be on the upswing. During our winter meetings, I conducted a clicker survey and asked attendees about the importance of TPS as a rice pest. About half of respondents thought TPS problems were about the same as 10-15 years ago, but 40 percent thought TPS problems were worse or much worse. About a third of respondents also had noticed a reduction in the efficacy of the pyrethroid insecticides used to control TPS. Last year, I collected TPS from two fields where the pest had survived a pyrethroid application and conducted a laboratory test to determine their susceptibility to several rates of the insecticide. TPS from the problem fields survived 24 hours in water treated with five times the label rate of the pyrethroid; TPS from a field with no issues were killed after 24 hours in water treated with the label rate. Copper sulfate killed all TPS from all fields after 24 hours. Tadpole shrimp may be developing tolerance to pyrethroid insecticides. We have seen tolerance to other pesticides before; in the 1980s, TPS became tolerant to parathion after about 20 years of use. We are approaching the same timespan with the pyrethroids, which were introduced in the early 2000s. Growers and pest control advisers need to take this into consideration when planning their TPS applications. Copper sulfate is still effective and could be used as a rotational product.

Tadpole shrimp (left) can injure rice when the shell is half the size of a rice kernel. Tadpole shrimp eggs (right) are microscopic compared to a typical medium-grain rice kernel.

Immature tadpole shrimp may be hard to detect because they don’t cause muddy water around the feeding site. But they can still do damage to rice roots.

large enough to be detected in the flood water after careful observation. I have been able to see TPS of damaging size after five days of starting the flood in late May. If planting during warm weather or in late May, make sure to scout for TPS very soon after seeding. Dr. Luis Espino is a University of California Cooperative Extension rice systems adviser and county director in Colusa County. He may be reached at laespino@ucanr.edu. RICEFARMING.COM

N O M I N A T I O N

Nominate an outstanding consultant or pest control advisor (PCA) for the inaugural 2017 Rice Consultant of the Year Award. Sponsored by Dow AgroSciences and Rice Farming magazine, the award recognizes the dedication, leadership and innovation of this crucial segment of the U.S. rice industry. The RCOY award recipient will receive the following: 

Four-page feature in Rice Farming magazine.



Special recognition reception prior to the 2018 Mid-South Farm & Gin Show in Memphis, Tenn.



One-night’s hotel stay and round-trip travel to Memphis for the award recipient and nominator.

F O R M

Please use a separate page for biographical/professional information. Additional recommendations via letters or emails from other farmers, consultants and industry members are also encouraged to provide support for the nominee. See instructions at bottom left to submit these materials. Consultant’s Name: Company Name: Mailing Address: City:

State:

Phone:

Email:

Zip:

Please describe the dedication, leadership and innovation that makes this person a good candidate for the 2017 Rice Consultant of the Year Award:

Submit nominations by May 31, 2017. Options to submit supporting materials: E-mail: csmith@onegrower.com

Your Name:

Mail: Carroll Smith 7201 Eastern Ave. Germantown, TN 38138

Address: City:

State:

Phone:

Email:

S P O N S O R E D

Zip:

B Y

Abbreviated Rules. No Purchase Necessary. Contest ends on 5/31/17 at 11:59:59 PM (CT). To enter, go to http://www.ricefarming.com/rcoy. Nominators must be legal residents of the fifty (50) United States and District of Columbia who are 18 years of age or older at the time of entry and possess knowledge and/or experience in the rice farming industry. Entrants must be legal residents of the fifty (50) United States and District of Columbia who are 18 years of age or older at the time of entry and serve as a rice consultant or as a pest control advisor in the rice farming industry. Subject to complete Official Rules found at http://www.ricefarming.com/rcoy. Void where prohibited. Sponsor: Dow AgroSciences LLC, 9330 Zionsville Road, Indianapolis, IN 46268. Trademark of The Dow Chemical Company (“Dow”) or an affiliated company of Dow. ©2017 Dow AgroSciences LLC

Specialists Speaking

Pre-flood urea should always be applied on dry soil

Figure 1. Effect of soil moisture on fertilizer efficiency of urea and NBPT-treated urea (Agrotain Ultra) for a trial conducted at the H. Rouse Caffey Rice Research Station in 2015.

DR. DUSTIN HARRELL LOUISIANA Extension Rice Specialist dharrell@agcenter.lsu.edu

Pre-flood urea fertilizer applications should always be applied on dry ground and then flooded immediately to minimize nitrogen (N) losses and maximize fertilizer efficiency. When urea fertilizer breaks down, it has the potential to be converted into ammonia gas, which subsequently can be lost to the atmosphere through a process called ammonia volatilization. Studies have shown that 30 percent or more of the applied N fertilizer can be lost in 10 days. Typically, volatilization does not start for the first couple of days after the application when urea is applied onto dry ground. However, when urea is applied onto a moist soil or is applied into a standing flood, the urea is broken down quickly and volatilization can start immediately. This significantly increases the potential for larger N losses. Treating urea with a urease inhibitor that contains the active ingredient NBPT can temporarily protect N from volatility losses when urea is applied onto a dry or moist soil surface. But the protection lasts only half the time (approximately five days) when the urea is applied onto moist soil compared to when it is applied on a dry soil (approximately 10 days). A urease inhibitor will not provide any protection when the urea is applied into a standing flood. Applications of urea applied into a standing

Consultants and IPM are great investments SAM ATWELL

MISSOURI Agronomy Specialist atwells@missouri.edu The 2016 Missouri rice-growing season and crop was the most diverse we have experienced in many years. Overall, yields are off probably 15 percent from the five-year average. How do we improve that and make a profit in 2017 growing rice with present prices? I believe most farmers grow rice as economically as possible already. So I have no advice except study your situation with your consultant and be timely with every input. Due to a very dry fall, Missouri growers have regraded and prepared their fields for 2017 and are ready to plant. Recent

RICE FARMING • APRIL 2017

flood will also produce N losses from other pathways in addition to ammonia volatilization. This further reduces N fertilizer efficiency in this scenario. Applications of urea into a standing flood for early season rice should always be avoided when possible. The figure above comes from research conducted in 2015 at the LSU AgCenter Rice Station. The figure illustrates the N use efficiency (percent of applied fertilizer N that actually makes it into the plant) of urea and NBPT-treated urea when pre-flood applications are made onto a dry or moist soil or into a standing flood.

rains have saturated our soils so we’re off to a good start with lower pumping costs. According to the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, if you are having problems pumping enough water, it’s likely not the aquifer but probably the well. Cutting inputs and making big changes may not be advisable in most cases. However, this week I recommended to one grower to strongly consider switching from paddy to furrowirrigated rice. This was after writing last month about being cautious making this switch. Why this recommendation? Because of his heavy clay soil, strong well, topography, his land was prepared and, most importantly, his knowledge of what he was trying to accomplish. Everything favored him keeping his soil super saturated and not have dry stress spots later this summer. Early insects and diseases reduce yield and quality and increase production cost, which lowers profit. I follow University of Arkansas recommendations to always plant treated seed. Integrated pest management and consultants are a great investment, and we should never let our guard down checking fields. RICEFARMING.COM

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Specialists Speaking

Early water management is critical for optimizing yield DR. BOBBY GOLDEN MISSISSIPPI Extension Rice Specialist bgolden@drec.msstate.edu

Most rice cultivated in the Mid-South is produced using the direct-seeded, delayed-flood production method. In this system, a continuous flood is maintained from five-leaf growth stage until a few weeks prior to harvest. Currently, there is emphasis being placed on alternative production strategies to aid water conservation in Mid-South rice production systems. These newer production practices include alternate wetting and drying (AWD) and furrow-irrigated (row rice). In both of these systems, a permanent flood is not held as long as in the direct-seeded, delayed-flood system. These new water management systems offer benefits of reduced water consumption in many instances, but they will require great attention to maximize agronomic inputs. Thinking back to my dissertation defense, one of the questions I was asked was, “Why do we flood rice? It doesn’t require a flood to complete its life cycle.” The short answer is we gain many agronomic advantages from maintaining a flood, including help with weed control, improved nitrogen-use efficiency, and an increase in field resistance to many rice disease complexes. Weed control seems to be getting more difficult every year with the increasing trend in herbicide resistance. There are 12 herbicide-resistant weed species in Mississippi, five of which are problematic in rice. Direct-seeded, delayed-flood rice production offers an additional cultural practice (continuous flood) for minimizing herbicide-resistant weed interference with the crop. Research has proven multiple times that establishing a permanent, continuous flood immediately after N fertilizer application to dry ground results in optimal grain yields. Nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) in rice produced with the direct-seeded, delayed-flood production system is greater than that observed with any other row cropping system in the Mississippi Delta. Recent data suggest similar NUE potential with AWD production systems if the flood is held for a minimum of three weeks after establishment. On the disease front, generally less water means increased disease pressure. Although sheath blight is the most economically important disease for rice growers, rice produced with limited amounts of flood water is more prone to the blast disease complex. Rice grown under consistent deep floods (>4”) is less susceptible to blast than rice produced with shallow floods, moist soil or drought conditions. If you’re thinking about switching or have switched to one of the alternative rice production systems in 2017, keep the following in mind. Choose a variety with a good disease package, have

RICE FARMING • APRIL 2017

a plan for potentially altering your nitrogen and weed management strategies, and scout for disease regularly. Newer production methods can be successful with detailed and timely attention to agronomic inputs.

Overspend on residuals to save money! DR. JARROD HARDKE

ARKANSAS Asst. Professor/Rice Extension Agronomist University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service jhardke@uaex.edu Everyone is looking for ways to cut costs going into this rice season. With an expected reduction of more than 300,000 rice acres for Arkansas this year, for many the cost savings begins with planting something other than rice. For the 1 million to 1.2 million acres still going into rice, let’s think about ways to save. We must have our base fertility correct. This means putting out the required phosphorus, potassium and zinc to meet our needs based on soil test recommendations. If you have fields where fertility levels fall in the medium to optimum categories, you may be able to trim rates and get by, but weaker spots in the field may make you pay for that decision. We need to treat the seed. Use both a fungicide seed treatment package and an insecticide. The fungicides protect emerging plants from the seedling disease complex. This protection only lasts for two to three weeks but can often be worth it in preventing severe plant losses that lead to replants. Insecticide seed treatments on average provide a positive return more than 80 percent of the time. The average yield response is more than 8 bushels per acre – with or without insect pressure. We need to keep the seeding rate up. The plan is to always try to get the optimum seeding rate out there – no more and no less than we need to optimize yield. Nobody knows better than an individual farmer what types of plant stands he or she can achieve. At the end of the day, regardless of the amount of seed planted, we want to see ~15 plants per square foot for varieties and ~7 plants per square foot for hybrids. You can get by with a little less and you’re fine with a little more, but this is the middle ground. So let’s get to where we can save a little money. Spending the money you need on residual herbicides up front will pay huge dividends in the long run. Activated pre-emergence herbicides provide weeks of weed control at relatively low costs. When looking over the Arkansas Rice Research Verification Program results, one of the standouts for cost savings has always been our emphasis on using overlapping residual herbicide chemistries with multiple modes of action. From 2014-2016, herbicide costs have been less than $70 per acre for fields enrolled in the program. Average yields for the program also outpace state average yields by 10-plus bushels annually. Apply residual pre-emergence herbicides at planting. The RICEFARMING.COM

SPECIALISTS SPEAKING second application should provide some overlap with another, different residual herbicide, and add a post-emergence herbicide to the mix only to clean up anything that may have emerged. Post-emergence herbicides to clean up jailbreaks are where we lose money and get behind on costs. Start clean and stay clean.

Organic rice requires different pest control tactics DR. M.O. “MO” WAY TEXAS Rice Research Entomologist moway@aesrg.tamu.edu

As of March 7, some Texas rice farmers have already planted due to unseasonably warm temperatures. This means farmers are on the edge of their seats to plant. By and large, this is a good thing, because once it starts raining, who knows when it will quit. In the past, I have had farmers tell me they plant when Indian paintbrush—also known as owl’s clover—begins to bloom. Last week driving to work, I saw a smattering of this wildﬂower blooming along the roadside, so it’s GO time! I wanted to talk a little about growing organic rice in Texas. We estimate about 15-20 percent of Texas’ 190,000 rice acres in 2016 was organic. Organic rice acreage continues to increase in Texas because of the low price for conventional rice. I suggest planting organic rice later than you normally plant conventional rice. Later plantings are associated with higher temperatures, which encourage rice to emerge quicker. This helps rice compete with weeds. Another tactic to encourage rapid emergence is to soak seed before planting. This can shave off a couple days from planting to emergence.

Getting a good, strong stand is absolutely essential to producing respectable organic rice yields. Rice water weevil is probably the most serious insect pest of organic rice, and it prefers thin, weak stands, so increase your seeding rate and don’t allow your fields to drain after applying the permanent flood. Some farmers drain fields to control rice water weevil, but I don’t recommend this practice because soil must dry to cracking to have a negative effect on root maggots. In addition, draining fields can exacerbate blast and release weeds. A relatively shallow flood can reduce ovipositioning sites for adult water weevils. In general, medium-grain varieties can tolerate more rice water weevil damage than long-grain varieties. I know on the east side of the Texas Rice Belt, many of our organic rice farmers plant Rondo or Tesanai 2. I also know some organic rice farmers on the west side of the Texas Rice Belt plant hybrid varieties in spite of the high seed cost. They also plant Presidio, a conventional inbred variety. Fall armyworm is another insect that can cause serious damage to organic rice. Late instar larvae can completely defoliate rice down to the water level. Scouting your fields frequently and carefully as soon as the crop emerges through the water is critical to control fall armyworm. You can apply Bacillus thuringiensis products to control fall armyworm larvae attacking organic rice, and the smaller the larvae, the better the control. Larvae must ingest this organically approved product for it to be effective; thus, it takes awhile for larvae to die once the product is applied. Some farmers are alerted to fall armyworm infestations when they observe egrets in their fields. By this time, a lot of damage has already occurred. Rice can withstand quite a bit of defoliation—about 20 percent leaf loss without yield loss. However, when infestations are high and larvae are large, significant defoliation can occur in a short time, especially during high temperatures.

DR. M.O. WAY

Scout fields as soon after they emerge and often to catch armyworms before they do significant damage.

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APRIL 2017 • RICE FARMING

Two named to Louisiana Ag Consultants Hall of Fame Dr. Johnny Saichuk, retired Louisiana State University AgCenter rice specialist, and Dr. Jim Griffin, retired LSU AgCenter weed scientist, are the newest members of the Louisiana Agricultural Consultants Association Hall of Fame. At its recent annual meeting in Marksville, LACA recognized the two inductees as well as presented four scholarships to LSU graduate students. • Lina Bernaola is currently working on her doctorate in entomology. Her dissertation is titled “Interactions Between Below Ground and Above Ground Organisms in Rice.” • Emily Kraus’ doctoral research examines how rice plants respond to early season biotic and abiotic stresses. • Jorge Reyes Pineda is studying populations of the fungus, Aspergillus flavus, and how it behaves in the corn ecosystem. • The recipient of the first Master of Science scholarship, Myra Purvis, is researching taproot decline in soybeans. Her work involves identifying resistant varieties, alternate hosts and chemical control. Bradley Sartain, a graduate research assistant in the LSU AgCenter School of Plant, Environmental and Soil Sciences, received the 2016 Young Endowed Assistantship for Row Crop Integrated Pest Management, funded by Ray and Dorothy Young. Sartain is studying control measures for giant salvinia, an invasive species that has choked waterways throughout Louisiana. He warned that another aquatic weed, crested floating heart, now found in Texas, could be a bigger problem than giant salvinia.

RICE FARMING • APRIL 2017

California Rice Commission launches redesigned website

The LSU AgCenter has hired Dr. Blake Wilson as an assistant professor of entomology. In that role, he will have research and Extension responsibilities for rice and sugarcane insect pests. Wilson grew up in Mandeville, La., and Dr. Blake received a bachelor of Wilson science in biology, a master of science in entomology-experimental statistics and a doctorate in entomology, all from LSU. He began his entomology career byworking as an undergraduate laboratory assistant in Dr. Gene Reagan’s sugarcane entomology lab. Wilson’s research focus has been primarily stem borer ecology and pest management in Louisiana and Texas sugarcane and rice.

The Sacramento, Calif.-based California Rice Commission recently launched a completely redesigned website, www. calrice.org, that plays up the crop’s photogenic qualities. “It’s still very heavy on information, but it’s presented in a way that’s very heavy on visuals,” says Jim Morris, communications manager. “It’s all about reaching consumers to let them know that rice matters in the Sacramento Valley. This is not an educational effort for rice farmers or millers.” The commission redesigns its website every two to three years to ensure it remains fresh and engaging. The site also has to function across a broad array of digital devices ranging from tablets and smart phones to personal computers.

Southeast Missouri State dedicates new rice greenhouse

Phyllis and Gary Sebree

Gary Sebree inducted into Arkansas Ag Hall of Fame Gary Sebree, the 2016 Rice Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, was recently inducted into the Arkansas Agriculture Hall of Fame. A third-generation rice producer near Stuttgart, Ark., Sebree farms about 2,000 acres of rice and soybeans. He served on the Producers Rice Mill Board of Directors for 43 years, with the final 24 years as chairman. Sebree also was chairman of USA Rice from 2002-2004. Also inducted was the late Dr. Bobby Wells, former head of the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture Agronomy Department. Specializing in rice nutrition and soil fertility, Wells is the father of the Arkansas three-way split nitrogen application regime.

Officials with Southeast Missouri State University’s Department of Agriculture recently dedicated a new greenhouse designed for rice research at its Malden Regional Campus. The 1,500-square-foot facility is expected to broaden rice breeding efforts spearheaded by the Missouri Rice Research and Merchandising Council. Numerous university classes focused on breeding and genetics, horticulture, plant physiology and soil sciences also will use the facility. The greenhouse is being funded in part with a $100,000 U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Business Enterprise Grant targeted at supporting rice breeding research and furthering research of Missouri rice.

SOUTHEAST MISSOURI STATE UNIVERSITY

Dr. Johnny Saichuk (right), former LSU AgCenter rice agronomist, accepts the Louisiana Ag Consultants Hall of Fame award from LACA President Mark Smith.

LSU AgCenter hires new rice, sugarcane entomologist

USA RICE

LOUISIANA AGRICULTURAL CONSULTANTS ASSOCIATION

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The 1,500-square-foot greenhouse will be used for rice breeding as well as student classes. RICEFARMING.COM

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