Feature Story

U.S.  Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue has declared 23 counties in Arkansas as declared disaster areas, making growers and other property owners in those counties eligible for emergency loans through the Farm Service Agency. The declaration was issued May 24 by Perdue and announced May...

Growers interested in the new Provisia Rice System will get a chance to see the first commercially released variety in a large-scale planting at Horizon Ag's June 27 field day in Kaplan, La. Developed by BASF through traditional breeding techniques, Provisia...

Arkansas rice researchers take the guesswork out of midseason nitrogen needs with the use of a handheld device. By Jarrod Hardke “Well Doc, what’s it gonna be?” Trent Roberts, Extension soil fertility specialist with the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture,...

Pay attention to avoid drift when applying soybean desiccants around rice fields, even those that are near draining and appear finished. By Bobby Golden Generally, this time of year we discuss midseason to harvest management options for our rice crop. But...

Computerized bin monitors fine-tune rice drying, improving grain quality and energy savings. By Vicky Boyd Editor Knowing a load could face rejection if it was too high in moisture, Mike McCarty was diligent about sampling his grain bins 2 feet down to take readings. He...

Lower acreage, increased export expectations bring market optimism, but more export sales will be needed to significantly boost prices. By Kurt Guidry The rice market finally received some positive fundamental supply and demand news over the past few weeks with the release...

Arkansas row crop farmers who awoke Sunday to lakes where their newly planted fields had been will be enduring a nail-biting week to see how fast the water recedes and how much new rain might fall Wednesday, while bracing...

The Environmental Protection Agency as well as the California Department of Pesticide Registration have registered Butte herbicide for California water-seeded rice. The herbicide is a premix of benzobicyclon, a mode of action, and halosulfuron-methyl, marketed as Sandea in California. The...

The U.S. Senate confirmed former Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue as the secretary of agriculture, April 24, on an 87-11 vote. As head of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Perdue will be in charge of a staff of about 100,000 employees....

ChemChina and Swiss-based Syngenta AG have agreed to divest three types of pesticides to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that their proposed merger would harm competition in several U.S. markets. The European Union made a similar announcement concerning the mergers...

University of California Extension entomologist Larry Godfrey, a 26-year member of the UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology faculty, died April 18 after a battle with cancer. He was 60. Godfrey was a fixture at the California Rice Field...

Row rice continues to make inroads as growers seek ways to reduce labor and equipment costs. By Vicky Boyd Editor Even after experimenting with furrow-irrigated or row rice for three seasons, Monty Bohanan — who farms with his brother Derek near Stuttgart, Ark. — admits...

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

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

Wilmington, Del.-based Nichino America Inc. and Kawasaki, Japan-based Kyoyu Agri Co. Ltd. have signed a licensing agreement that would allow Nichino to market and sell the rice herbicide, pyraclonil, in California. The product is not currently registered for use in...