Plan For Proactive Rice Weed Control

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Rick Deviney

Deviney Ag Service
DeWitt, Arkansas

While in college, I scouted cotton and worked for a flying service. After graduating, I was a crop duster until 2010 when my friend who had a crop consulting business hired me. I bought him out in 2017 and started Deviney Ag Service on my own. Because I always enjoyed serving others, I included the word “service” in the company name. In 2020, we planted a lot of acres early, so it took a long time to get a stand in both levee rice and row rice. Overall, our weed control programs were successful, and yields were average to better than average. Today, about 25% of my rice acres are row rice, which has been gaining popularity.

Our primary target weeds are barnyardgrass and pigweed. We try to prevent pigweed from emerging by applying residuals. When we go to flood in levee rice, the water will get them while they are still fairly small. Because there is no flood in row rice, pigweed shows up in the field all season long. We’re using more Loyant® herbicide postemergence in row rice because it takes out tough broadleaf weeds and can be applied by ground. Since barnyardgrass is our No. 1 enemy, I believe in being proactive and killing it when it’s small. A postemergence application of RebelEX® herbicide is a good fit in fields before we go to flood when barnyardgrass and sprangletop are present. RebelEX also picks up small broadleaves and sedges.

Versatile Herbicide Portfolio
Ag pilots check the wind when making herbicide applications in fields next to sensitive crops. If they finish 80% of a field before the wind shifts, you potentially can get in a bind because the weeds in the unsprayed area continue growing.

That’s when I choose a herbicide based on the target weeds and the adjacent crop. For example, if rice is surrounded by bean fields and grass is present, I spray Clincher® SF herbicide. If corn is next door, we run Grasp® SC and Facet herbicides. An important part of my job as a rice consultant is finding herbicides that fit and can be applied. The Corteva Agriscience herbicides are versatile enough to get you out of situations that come up with weeds in rice fields next to sensitive crops.

While waiting for the rain and cold weather to pass, my farmers focused on getting everything ready to go. With bigger equipment, they knew they could get a lot done when the planting window opened. Because markets are up for rice as well as the other crops, payouts are looking good this year.

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