Arkansas Rice Update 4-12-24

by Jarrod Hardke, Rice Extension Agronomist - April 12, 2024

Arkansas Rice Update 2024-03

April 12, 2024

Jarrod Hardke and Nick Bateman

“I been warped by the rain.”

Inconsistent Conditions

The eclipse has come and gone (and the world didn’t end).  If you were able to see totality, that was pretty cool, and if you didn’t you’ll get your chance 21 years from now.

This past week went a little differently than we expected overall.  We thought heavy rain was going to extend all the way into southern Missouri starting Monday night and wipe out the week.  What actually happened (Fig. 1, 2) is that I-40 seemed to create a dividing line and heavier rain totals stayed roughly south of there.  The southeast region had heavy totals from Monday night through Thursday morning (up to 5+ inches), the central region had slightly lesser amounts, and the northeast region had less than an inch mainly occurring Wednesday night.

The progress report came in with only 13% which is far below where we actually were (maybe eclipse activities slowed reporting) (Table 1, Fig. 3).  As a state we’re likely somewhere around 50% planted with the northeast showing the greatest progress and a gradient down toward the southeast with the least planted.  An overgeneralization would be 75% planted in northeast, 50% planted in central, and 25% planted in southeast.

The upside of the rain across the region for all this planting progress is primarily pre-emergence herbicide activation.  Many fields were sprayed at the end of last weekend into the weekend looking to get an activating rainfall this week.  Hopefully activation occurred timely enough to do the job.  Given the winds, some had rice sitting in drying soil that needed some moisture to get things germinating and progressing along.  So far, early rice emerging is starting to look very good.

There are more opportunities for continued planting progress being taken advantage of right now in north AR before our next rain chances on Tuesday and Thursday of the coming week.  Some are already back at it starting just north of I-40, so progress numbers will continue to climb but with the south of I-40 crowd likely still sitting and waiting on decent dry stretch again.  Fig. 5 and 6 don’t give a lot of confidence in that happening with likely above normal precipitation in the 6-10 and 8-14 day outlooks.  Temperatures look very nice and warm until a cool down in the middle of next week.

Fig. 1.  NOAA past 7-day observed precipitation.

Fig. 2.  Central and South Arkansas rains have punished levees in some early planted rice fields.

Table 1. U.S. Rice Planting Progress as of April 7, 2024 (USDA-NASS).

Fig. 3.  2012-2024 Arkansas rice planting progress by week (USDA-NASS).

Fig. 4.  NOAA 7-day precipitation forecast.

Fig. 5.  NOAA 6-10 day precipitation outlook.

Fig. 6.  NOAA 8-14 day precipitation outlook.

DD50 Rice Management Program is Live

The DD50 Rice Management Program is live and ready for fields to be enrolled for the 2024 season.  All log-in and producer information has been retained from the 2023 season, so if you used the program last year you can log in just as you did last year.  Log in and enroll fields here:  https://dd50.uada.edu.

Beware Invasive Snails Found in Crawfish Shipments

Jarrod Hardke and Nick Bateman

The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (AGFC) needs the public’s help in preventing the spread of giant apple snails, an invasive aquatic species native to South America, recently found in shipments of live crawfish from Louisiana.

Giant apple snails have not yet been found in the wild in Arkansas but have been established in Louisiana for many years.  The AGFC has worked with the state of Louisiana to prevent the spread of this invasive species through many potential pathways of introduction, including aquarium pet releases and educational campaigns on cleaning of boats and recreational equipment.  Additional vigilance by Arkansans through inspections of any live crawfish shipments (no matter the source) will help prevent further spread of this invasive species that could affect native wildlife and Arkansas’ rice industry.

In our rice production system in Arkansas, the giant apple snail shouldn’t be a major concern as we don’t practice a great deal of no-till or water-seeding.  However, note that fields practicing these techniques would be at the greatest risk of having an issue.

There are no real treatment options for this pest.  There are some potentially useful treatment options, but at this time we need to just keep an eye out and scout for them.  We will get data on control options for here in Arkansas if the pest is found in rice fields.

AGFC news release:  https://www.agfc.com/news/agfc-discovers-invasive-apple-snails-in-live-crawfish-shipments/

Fig. 7.  These were just a few of the giant apple snails recently found in live crawfish shipments from Louisiana (AGFC photo).

Use the Arkansas Rice Advisor Internet App!

The Arkansas Rice Advisor site https://riceadvisor.uada.edu functions like an app on your mobile device.  There you can readily access the DD50 program, rice seeding rate calculator, drill calibration, fertilizer and N rate calculators, publications, and more.

Additional Information

Arkansas Rice Updates are published periodically to provide timely information and recommendations for rice production in Arkansas.  If you would like to be added to this email list, please send your request to rice@uada.edu.

This information will also be posted to the Arkansas Row Crops blog (http://www.arkansas-crops.com/) where additional information from Extension specialists can be found.

More information on rice production, including access to all publications and reports, can be found at http://www.uaex.uada.edu/rice.

Acknowledgements

We sincerely appreciate the support for this publication provided by the rice farmers of Arkansas and administered by the Arkansas Rice Research and Promotion Board.

The authors greatly appreciate the feedback and contributions of all growers, county agents, consultants, and rice industry stakeholders.