By Derek Albert
LSU AgCenter
LSU AgCenter researchers continue to study the benefits and challenges posed by the alternative rice growing method of planting rice on furrow-irrigated rows.
AgCenter extension rice specialist Ronnie Levy said in 2020 Louisiana rice growers produced about 480,000 acres of rice — 35,000 acres of which were grown on rows. While row rice tallied about 7.5% of the state’s total rice acreage, the burgeoning method constitutes about 30% of rice acreage in the northeast Louisiana region. For the 2021 growing season, researchers are seeing a 50% to 60% decline in those acreage numbers due to a delayed planting season caused by early precipitation and because of the market price of other commodities, such as soybeans and corn, competing for acreage across the state.