Texas rice grower Jacko Garrett continues to ‘share the harvest’ through his charitable efforts. • By Vicky Boyd, Editor • For more than three decades, Danbury, Texas, rice producer Jacko Garrett has been growing rice specifically to donate to the Houston Food Bank. Along the way, he has enlisted the help of other growers and obtained donations from agricultural chemical ... Read More »
Take an integrated approach to disease management and consider several factors before making an application. • By Vicky Boyd, Editor • No two farming seasons are alike, and that also goes for variations in plant disease severity from year to year. Nevertheless, plant pathologists say some recommendations ring true every season. Start by choosing varieties with tolerance to your most ... Read More »
Nitrogen management can help control rice diseases and boost quality. • By Bob Johnson • Knowing how much nitrogen to apply to rice, and when, is the key to good yields and to managing diseases such as blast and stem rot. Too much fertilizer can encourage either of these important diseases, farm advisors say. Scaling back to just enough can ... Read More »
Research examines potential water savings of automated and remote irrigation systems. • By Vicky Boyd, Editor • Nowadays, computer and smartphone technology allows users to monitor home security, adjust thermostats, and automatically turn on and off lights and appliances while they’re away. Drew Gholson, a Mississippi State University Extension irrigation specialist, is conducting farm-scale research trials to determine whether growers ... Read More »
• By Bruce Schultz • A Louisiana State University AgCenter plant pathologist will use a $500,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to pinpoint the location of a gene in rice that could help farmers control a potentially devastating plant disease. “Our goal is to characterize the resistance to narrow brown leaf spot at the genetic and functional level,” ... Read More »
Start early, overlap preemergence residuals for season-long barnyardgrass control. • By Vicky Boyd, Editor • University of Arkansas Extension weed specialist Tommy Butts has a simple recommendation for barnyardgrass control this season: “residual, residual, residual.” “Make sure to get those residuals out preemerge and overlap every 14-21 days,” he said. “And make sure we’re getting activation with plenty of water ... Read More »
Louisiana crawfish producers hope to rebound from hurricanes, pandemic this season. • By Vicky Boyd, Editor • The 2021 Louisiana crawfish season started off on a slow note as producers hoped to rebound from a double whammy caused by coronavirus-induced restaurant closures and last year’s series of hurricanes. As crews return from the holidays and harvest ramps up, Louisiana State ... Read More »
New Texas long-grain release offers stronger yield potential than Presidio • By Vicky Boyd, Editor • Texas A&M AgriLife Research is releasing Trinity, a new conventional long-grain rice variety with better first- and second-crop yield potential than Presidio — a previous Texas release that’s the most widely grown inbred in the state. Formerly known as RU1603178, Trinity was developed by ... Read More »
SW Louisiana farm family continues and expands the conservation practices that previous generations started. • By Amy Robertson Fuselier • Located in Louisiana’s Acadia and Vermilion parishes is Simon Farms, a multi-generational family farm known far and wide for their dedication to conservation. This close-knit family has a passion for soil health and a thirst for knowledge about ways to ... Read More »
Arkansas’ 2020 season had its ups and downs but finished on a profitable note. • By Ryan McGeeney • It almost goes without saying that 2020 will be a year to remember — even if many across the country may already be dreaming up ways to forget it. For Arkansas rice growers, the year proved to carry burdens both familiar ... Read More »
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