Editor’s note: To view the Rice Information Sheet No. 170 in its
entirety, including all of the tables, go to www.uaex.edu and search
for Arkansas Rice Performance Trials, 2009-2011 or contact your
local University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension office.
Choosing a variety is generally based upon past experience,
seed availability, agronomic traits and variety yield potential.
When choosing a rice variety, grain and milling yields,
lodging, maturity, disease susceptibility, seeding date,
field characteristics, the potential for quality reductions due to pecky
rice and market strategy should all be considered.
Variety performance data included in the Rice Information Sheet
No. 170 are from the Arkansas Rice Performance Trials (ARPT), disease observation plots in grower fields and from seeding date
studies conducted during 2009-2011. Additional information can be
found on the Arkansas Cooperative Extension Web site
(www.uaex.edu) and the annual B.R. Wells Rice Research Series
publication (http://www.uark.edu/depts/agripub/Publications/researchseries/).
Arkansas Rice Performance Trials
Varieties grown in the ARPT in 2011 averaged 162 bu/A of rough
rice compared to the state average yield of 152 bu/A as reported by
the USDA Crop Reporting Service. Data averaged over years and
locations are more reliable than a single year of data for evaluating rice
performance for such important factors as grain and milling yields, kernel size, maturity, lodging resistance, plant height and disease
susceptibility. It becomes more critical to evaluate as many years of
information as possible, particularly when extreme heat is experienced
such as it was during 2010 and 2011.
The ARPT and disease observation tests are supported through
grower check-off funds administered by the Arkansas Rice Research
and Promotion Board. These studies are conducted every year to
compare promising new experimental lines and newly-released varieties
from the breeding programs in Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas and
Mississippi with established varieties currently grown in Arkansas.
Location, Location, Location
The 2010 ARPT were conducted at six locations in Arkansas.
Multiple locations each year allow for continued reassessment of
the performance and adaptability of advanced breeding lines and
commercial varieties to environmental conditions, soil properties,
and management factors. Twenty-five entries, which were either
promising breeding lines or established varieties, were grown in each
of the four maturity groups (early, very short, short and mid-season)
for a total of 100 entries.
The 2011 ARPT tests were located at Pine Tree (PTBS), Newport
(NBES), and the Jerry and Blake Goodman farm in Clay County.
The studies were seeded on April 12, May 26 and April 2, respectively.
Cultural practices varied somewhat among the ARPT locations,
but, overall, the trials were grown under conditions for high yield.
Nitrogen was applied to ARPT tests located on Experiment Stations
in a single application of 120 lbs N/A at preflood on the silt loam soils
and 150 lbs N/A on the clay soils. Phosphorus and potassium fertilizers
were applied before seeding at each location.
Averaged across all of the locations, RiceTec XP753, Jupiter and
Roy J were the top-yielding varieties in the 2011 ARPT. RiceTec
XP753, Roy J and Francis were the highest-yielding long-grains in
2011. RiceTec XL723, CL XL729 and CL XL745 have been the
highest-yielding cultivars averaged across the past three years. Roy
J, Francis and Jupiter were the top three yielding conventional varieties
from 2009 to 2011.
Disease Susceptibility
Ratings for disease susceptibility should be evaluated critically to
optimize variety selection. Varieties should be selected for specific
fields, relative to the potential yield limitations observed in historical
yields. For example, Francis and Wells are both susceptible to rice
blast disease and should be planted in fields with low risk of this
disease. Other varieties should be considered for fields that have
limited water availability, poor water-holding ability, historical blast
infestations, high risk of straighthead and tree lines or other natural barriers
that encourage long dew periods.
Considerations for bacterial panicle blight should also be considered.
High-risk fields should be planted to resistant varieties (hybrids
and Jupiter). Conventional rice should be planted early and prior to
planting hybrids. Conventional rice should be managed as timely as
possible to avoid unnecessary stress.
Ratings are a general guide based on our expectations of the cultivar
reaction under conditions that strongly favor disease; however, environment
will modify the actual reaction in different fields. Also,
resistance to particular diseases, like blast, can be overcome by the fungus
over time. Do not expect these ratings to be an absolute predictor
of performance with respect to a particular disease in all situations.
Each year replicated variety trials are established in numerous
grower fields to monitor rice variety reaction to diseases. Yield information from these trials provides additional valuable information on
how varieties and advanced experimental lines perform across the state
when subjected to different environments and management practices,
as shown in the table on page 12.
Variety disease reaction data from these trials are used to help
establish disease susceptibility ratings. A Clearfield-only version is
also conducted at a few locations to enable monitoring the impact of
Newpath herbicides on the Clearfield varieties. Averaged across all
locations, Roy J and Taggart were the highest-yielding cultivars tested
in the Arkansas Disease Monitoring Tests. Yield variability among
the various locations not only represents different environments but
also susceptibility to various diseases present at specific locations.
New varieties included in the 2011 Arkansas Rice Performance Trials
include Caffey, CL152, CL162, Jazzman 2, RiceTec XP753,
XP754 and CL XP756. Additional information on specific varieties
not listed in the Rice Information Sheet No. 170 is available upon
request. Please contact your local county Extension agent.
This information is provided by: Charles E. Wilson, Jr., Professor/
Director RREC/Extension Agronomist-Rice; Karen Moldenhauer,
Professor, RREC; James Gibbons, Research Assistant Professor;
Rick Cartwright, Professor/Extension Plant Pathologist;
Fleet Lee, Professor; Rick Norman, Professor; John Bernhardt,
Research Assistant Professor; Charles Parsons, Program Associate;
Donna Frizzell, Program Associate; Jamie Branson, Program
Technician; Maurice Blocker, Program Associate; Jill Bulloch, Program
Technician; Edward Castaneda, Program Technician; Stewart
Runsick, Program Associate; and Ralph Mazzanti, Program Associate. |
