Feature

Research to create new heat-tolerant and herbicide-resistant rice strains is being conducted this summer at Southeast Missouri State University’s Rice Research Greenhouse in Malden, Missouri, and at the Missouri Rice Research Farm in Glennonville, Missouri. Southeast Department of Agriculture faculty will highlight their work at the Missouri Rice Council’s annual Rice Field Day, Aug. 22, at the Missouri Rice Research ... Read More »

• By Vicky Boyd, Editor • Soybean growers applying harvest aids near rice should pay special attention to minimize drift, which can potentially cause significant rice yield reductions even late in the season, says Justin McCoy, a Mississippi State University graduate student. “Your rice may nor be as safe as you think until you put it in the combine,” he ... Read More »

• By Vicky Boyd Editor • With Canada‘s recent approval, RiceTec is set to launch its FullPage herbicide-tolerant rice system for the 2020 season. The Alvin, Texas, hybrid rice developer showed off two new FullPage hybrids as well as a new medium-grain conventional hybrid and other experimental products at its recent Arkansas field day in Harrisburg. For 2020, RiceTec will ... Read More »

• By Vicky Boyd, Editor • A grassy weed with resistance to multiple herbicides poses as big – if not a bigger – challenge to Arkansas rice growers than herbicide-resistant Palmer amaranth does to soybean and cotton producers. That was the sobering outlook University of Arkansas Weed Scientist Jason Norsworthy presented about herbicide-resistant barnyardgrass during the recent University of Arkansas ... Read More »

High school seniors in the six U.S. rice-producing states have a chance to compete for $8,500 in scholarships in USA Rice’s annual National Rice Month Scholarship Contest. Applicants will create a 3-minute original video on a rice-related topic, including rice production, healthy eating or sustainability. The grand-prize winner will receive a $4,000 scholarship and a trip with a chaperone this ... Read More »

Not long after Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue announced details of a support package for farmers, Scott Stiles phone started ringing. On July 24, the U.S. Department of Agriculture rolled out the Market Facilitation Program, Food Purchase and Distribution Program and Agricultural Trade Promotion Program, all intended to help farmers affected by the international battle over tariffs. “The phone never stopped ... Read More »

Rice, already a staple grain for billions around the planet, could become an even more important food source with additional nutrients. Researchers with the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture’s Rice Processing Program presented this and other hopeful insights based upon their academic research at the annual Industry Alliance Meeting. The 2019 event was organized and hosted by the ... Read More »

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has released a county Market Facilitation Program payment schedule for growers with commodities that have been affected by foreign retaliatory tariffs. The assistance covers specialty crops, non-specialty crops, dairy and hogs. The rates range from $15 to $150 per acre, depending on the impact the tariffs have had on that particular county. They are the ... Read More »

The Environmental Protection Agency has published a draft guidance that examines plant regulator label claims, including biostimulant claims, and whether at least some of these products should be labeled as pesticides. A relatively new but growing category of products, plant biostimulants contain naturally occurring substances and microbes used to stimulate plant growth, enhance plant pest resistance and reduce abiotic stress. ... Read More »

• By Bruce Schultz • An LSU AgCenter research project at the Mer Rouge farm of Jason Waller was the setting for the northeast Louisiana row rice field day on July 18. The practice of row rice is gaining new converts because of its potential water savings and flexibility. The project being conducted by AgCenter agent Keith Collins includes conventional ... Read More »