The 2007 USA Rice Leadership Development Class visited the LSU AgCenter’s Rice Research Station in Crowley on March 18-23 during its tour of the Louisiana and Texas rice industry.

LSU AgCenter regional director Dr. Steve Linscombe, far right, who is in charge of the southwestern Louisiana region that includes its Rice Research Station, tells students in the USA Rice Leadership Development Class for 2007 about research projects and rice breeding work at the station.

One of the class members, Jessica Lundberg of Chico, Calif., says the research station was a highlight of the weeklong session.

“I certainly appreciate the work that goes on here,” says Lundberg, manager of the plant nursery for the 70-year-old Lundberg Family Farms in California’s Sacramento Valley. “This is the origin of our industry.”

Other participants in this year’s class are Eric Unkel of Kinder, La.; John Fred Denison of Iowa, La.; Trent Dabbs of Stuttgart, Ark.; Eric Leonard of Corning, Ark.; Shelley Smith of Boyle, Miss.; and Dr. Jennifer Wells of Memphis, Tenn.

The leadership program gives future agricultural leaders the chance to learn about all aspects of the rice industry and to develop their leadership skills.

“I continue to be impressed with the caliber of people in the leadership class,” Linscombe says. “This tells me the rice industry will be well served in the future.”

Fungicide gets Section 18
Topguard, a fungicide with both curative and preventive activity against soybean rust, (Phakopsora pachyrhizi) now has Sec. 18 emergency exemptions for control of that disease in selected states.

“Flutriafol, the active ingredient in Topguard, has been used extensively and successfully in Brazil and other countries where soybean rust is a problem,” says Dr. Jim Barrentine, Technical Services Director for Cheminova. “Because Topguard has a history of proven performance against soybean rust, we believe U.S. growers will find Topguard to be one of the most effective fungicides available for treatment whenever soybean rust hits in states with Section 18 emergency use exemptions.”

Terry Baker, Cheminova’s Business Development Director, says, “It’s very effective against this potentially devastating disease. Growers have a dual-action approach for protecting soybean yields, either prior to, or at the onset of infection.”

Baker says Topguard exhibits excellent systemic activity plus one of the longest residual disease control timeframes of the fungicides currently available. “It also offers outstanding soybean selectivity,” he says.

Topguard does not have Section 18 emergency exemptions for all soybean producing states. To see which states do have Section 18 emergency exemptions, please visit www.cheminova.us.com.

Arkansas legislature honors rice
Arkansas, like all the other states, has a state bird, state flower and a state tree, but it does not have a state grain. This is not the case any longer. Gov. Mike Beebe on March 19 signed a legislation naming rice the official grain of Arkansas.

Representative Bruce Maloch, who sponsored the bill in the House, was lobbied by his 12-year-old daughter to file the bill long before the session began in January.

Maloch felt the measure would demonstrate the importance of rice to Arkansas because it is the top rice-growing state, producing over 1.3 million acres per year at a value of $892 million.

Supplemental labels approved for zero-day burndown interval
The EPA says DuPont’s Harmony GT and Harmony Extra XP herbicides may be applied for burndown of emerged weeds before planting, or at planting, of rice, cotton, field corn, grain sorghum and soybeans.

Of these five crops, rice is the only one that has a zero-day burndown interval for both herbicides. Be sure to check the supplemental labels for any planting interval restrictions for the other crops.

An ammonium nitrogen fertilizer can be added to a surfactant or a crop oil concentrate to enhance control.

Broad-spectrum pyrethroid registered for California
ArkaMakhteshim Agan of North America, Inc. (MANA) has received California registration for Silencer 1 EC, giving PCAs and growers a new, reliable insecticide option for 2007.

Silencer 1 EC insecticide, with the same active ingredient as Warrior, is an effective broad-spectrum pyrethroid registered for use on rice, alfalfa, tree nuts, stone fruits and vegetables.

The emulsifiable concentrate formulation provides excellent knockdown and lasting residual protection against a host of common pests that damage crops in California every year.

According to MANA, Silencer is the premier generic lambda-cyhalothrin registered in the United States. The product has previously been registered in the other 49 states but is new to California for 2007.

Northeast Louisiana man named 2007 Farmer of the Year
For more than 33 years, Vendal Fairchild has worked the fields of northeast Louisiana – growing rice, corn and soybeans on nearly 2,500 acres. His proficiency as an agricultural producer was rewarded on March 2 when he was named the 2007 Louisiana Farmer of the Year.

“I was raised on a farm, and it was real exciting to drive tractors when I was a kid, to see crops grow and to watch the crop materialize through the year, and then be able to harvest. It’s something special,” Fairchild says.

Fairchild was recognized for his accomplishments at the Louisiana Farmer of the Year Banquet held at Chef John Folse’s White Oak Plantation in Baton Rouge.

The annual banquet and awards program for the state’s farmers was sponsored by Louisiana Network Inc., the Louisiana Farm Bureau Federation, the LSU AgCenter and the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry.

Fairchild was one of three finalists for the Farmer of the Year title this year, and all were honored during the banquet.

Other finalists recognized for their contributions to Louisiana agriculture were Richard Fontenot of Ville Platte and Fred Zaunbrecher of Duson.

Fairchild, who resides near Oak Grove in West Carroll Parish, knows one of the biggest hurdles facing ag producers is the uncertainty of the weather. To reduce his risk from drought, he has worked tirelessly to get his land irrigated.

“When we started farming in 1974, we had zero irrigation. In 2006, 99 percent was irrigated,” Fairchild says. “Drought is so bad here. It’s tough to watch those 50-bushel beans go to 10 bushels, and there was nothing I could do about it back then.”

Farming not only has provided Fairchild with a means to earn a living but has also provided an opportunity to spend time with those closest to him.

“I have had a real rewarding life, and I’ve enjoyed it,” he says. “Farming does give me time to be with my family more. My wife works on the farm with me, and that’s real rewarding for her to be with me.”

No-till becomes more efficient
No-till can reduce the number of field operations from eight to two, just roll and plant. No-till cover crops supply nutrients, build organic matter and prevent soil erosion. The challenge has been in finding the right equipment to knock down the cover crop before planting.

The I & J front-mounted, Cover-Crop Roller meets that challenge by allowing farmers to knock down a weed-suppressing cover-crop mat and plant through it all in one operation, rolling and planting simultaneously, cutting two no-till passes to one.

Available standard roller widths are 8-ft. (3-row), 10 1/2-ft. (4-row) and 15 1/2-ft. (6-row). Custom-built sizes are also available, up to 40 feet. To learn more, visit www.croproller.com.