UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS EXTENSION MORRILTON, ARKANSAS  In the nation’s largest rice-growing state, questions are being asked about what can be done at the international level to make the playing field even in global rice trade. Global agricultural trade took center stage at...

MICHAEL KLEIN ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA Fighting a war on two fronts is never advisable. Sure, the Romans pulled it off a few times, and so did the allies in World Wars I and II, but they were dragged into those fights –...

VIDALINA ABADAM, ANDREW SOWELL, SETH WECHSLER, ANGELICA WILLIAMS AND JENNIFER BOND USDA U.S. Rice Stocks Are Raised On Lower Use Forecast The U.S. all-rice ending stocks projection for 2025/26 increased 5 million hundredweight (cwt) to 55.3 million this month, the highest...

KEN DUHE BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA The crawfish industry that Louisiana depends on today didn’t just grow organically – it was built, in large part, through decades of LSU research. Now, as new challenges emerge – from extreme weather to evolving biological...

RYAN MCGEENEY LITTLE ROCK, ARKANSAS  Rice billbug has been a pest in U.S. rice production for as long as farmers have been growing it. But in 2026, it’s almost certainly going to be the No. 1 pest Arkansas rice farmers will...

BOB SCOTT FAYETTEVILLE, ARKANSAS And then it rained… What a difference rain can make.  I hope a lot of residual treatments went out between wind gusts prior to this rain setting in.  There was a noticeable difference in overall rice growth...

JOHN LOVETT FAYETTEVILLE, ARKANSAS  Electricity and water don’t usually mix, but technological advancements in floating solar arrays open the potential to generate electricity while decreasing impacts on farm irrigation reservoirs and agricultural land. Michael Popp with the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station is...

CONNOR WEBSTER BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA When it comes to deciding the direction of my research program, I rely heavily on my extension program to identify the needs of the industry. There’s always going to be unique one-off situations that may not...

RICHARD E. HICKS OCEAN SPRINGS, MISSISSIPPI This past week I spent a very enjoyable hour or so talking to a producer from California. It was very enlightening to speak with someone from that state. California is a place that pretty much...

Specialists Speaking - TYLER MUSGROVE - LOUISIANA Over the past 10-15 years, rice insect control has been an afterthought in Mid-South crop management. And it was for good reason — the pest spectrum was limited to a small handful of...

Specialists Speaking - SAM RUSTOM - TEXAS Background Over the past 10 years, rice delphacid (Tagosodes orizicolus) has become the No. 1 crop management concern for Texas rice producers. Native to Central America, South America, and the Caribbean, we think this...

Specialists Speaking - LUIS ESPINO - CALIFORNIA As I write this, planting season in California is starting. Price of rice is still depressed, so it is important to keep costs down. This might be a good time to review some...

Specialists Speaking - JARROD T. HARDKE - ARKANSAS You can’t outguess insects, but you can be on the lookout. Drought conditions create interesting concerns for developing insect problems. On one hand, there can be fewer alternate hosts for insects to...

Specialists Speaking- ANNA SMYLY Rice in the Mid-South is typically grown using the direct-seeded, delayed flood production method where a continuous flood is maintained from the four-to-five leaf growth stage until a couple of weeks before harvest. Maintaining a flood...

CARROLL SMITH CONTRIBUTING EDITOR As a child, fifth-generation rice farmer Mark Pousson grew up on the family farm in Jefferson Davis Parish in the Acadiana region of Louisiana. On a typical day, he could be found kicking the dirt and...