AgFax Rice - Louisiana

by AgFax.com

OVERVIEW

Much of our coverage area now falls into two categories – needing rain or needing anything but rain.

Dry conditions persist, particularly in portions of the Midsouth. Between lack of rain and unseasonably cold weather, plant growth has stalled to the point that some rice is still too short to take to flood.

Grape colaspis injury continues to turn up in parts of Arkansas where rice seed treatments wore off before fields could go to flood. That also raises concerns about potential for rice water weevil pressure late. Snails are apparently weakening levees in one Texas county. 

Leaf blast has been detected on a limited basis in south Louisiana and Texas. See comments by Dustin Harrell in Louisiana.

Rice is starting to head in south Louisiana.

CROP COMMENTS

Dustin Harrell, Louisiana Rice Extension Specialist, LSU Rice Research Station, Crowley: "With this warmer weather, our rice in south Louisiana is really moving along. In some early-planted fields we're actually seeing our first headed rice. Midseason applications have just been finished in the bulk of our crop down here. From there, we'll start watching for diseases, although pressure so far has been really light. I've only had one report of leaf blast, which was in a field of Jupiture that was right at green ring.

"In north Louisiana where heavy rains delayed planting, we've mostly got newly emerged rice and seedlings, so our 2016 crop is spread out pretty widely."