Louisiana Crops Newsletter: October 2026
Choice of varieties for planting is a crucial management decision that sets the stage for yield potential and input costs. While grain yield is the most important factor, test weight, disease resistance, and heading date are important considerations as they also impact economic return.
Test weight is important because low test weight results in dockage at the elevator. Heading day is a function of cold requirement (vernalization) and day length (photoperiod) response that determines when a variety heads out.
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Agricultural Policy And Market Situation Newsletter: October 2026
China has purchased more cargoes of US soybeans, extending a buying spree this week that marks its first acquisitions since the two leaders of the two countries held a summit in late September.” “State-owned companies have booked at least 20 soybean shipments that will be delivered from the US Gulf and Pacific West, according to people familiar with the matter, equivalent to around 1.3 million tons,” Bloomberg reported.
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"The Sweat Don't Stop"
Eddie Lewis III’s sugar cane crop looks better than it has in years, but he’ll be lucky if he breaks even by the end of the harvest.
Diesel prices have nearly doubled since he created his budget last winter. Fertilizer costs are up 20%. And a new, invasive pest known as the pasture mealybug has led to an unexpected $25,000 pesticide bill.
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LSU’s Agricultural Student Organizations Competed in Annual Hay Bale Decorating Contest
Agriculture students at LSU got to show off their artistic talent during Homecoming Week. Eight student organizations competed in the College of Agriculture Student Association’s What the Hay competition.
What the Hay allowed the different organizations to decorate hay bales that represent them. This year’s theme was The House We Built.
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LSU AgCenter Agents Earn National Honors for Improving Health in La. Communities
LSU AgCenter nutrition and community health agents were recently recognized for distinguished service and outstanding programs at the National Extension Association of Family and Consumer Sciences Annual Session in Knoxville, Tennessee.
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Crop Market Report for Corn, Soybeans, Rice, and Cotton: October 2026
Last week, USDA announced that Agriculture Risk Coverage (ARC) and Price Loss Coverage (PLC) payments will be made available to eligible producers in October for the 2025 crop year. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) also increased the ARC/PLC payment limit from $125,000 to $155,000, starting with the 2025 crop year with annual adjustments based on inflation. The payment limit for the 2025 crop year is $160,000.
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Louisiana Rice: Notice Rice Delphacid Found
Rice delphacid (RD) was detected from our Rice Research Verification Field in Beauregard Parish. This is the first time RD has been seen in 2026 from commercial fields in Louisiana. Previous observations have been limited to research plots in NELA.
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Sweet Potato Harvest Going Well, Waiting on Cooler Weather
Louisiana sweet potato growers are harvesting a good crop and should continue to do so through October. LSU AgCenter correspondent Craig Gautreaux has this report from northeast Louisiana.
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Former 4-H'er Hopes To Use Her Story To Inspire, 'Open Doors' For The Next Generation
As a young girl, Alexis Bearden struggled fitting in. She had a large scar on her back from being born with spina bifida, and she was bullied for much of her early childhood. As she struggled to make friends, her mom, a former 4-H’er herself, decided to put Alexis into the Clover Buds program to see if this would help her socialize.
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Louisiana Agriculture Hall Of Distinction Accepting Nominations
The Louisiana Agriculture Hall of Distinction is now accepting nominations for its annual induction ceremony, which will be held March 18, 2027, in Baton Rouge.
The nomination form can be obtained online at www.louisianaagriculturehallofdistinction.com or through any parish LSU AgCenter office. The deadline for receiving nominations is Nov. 20.
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New Invasive Pest Continues to be a Problem for Sugarcane as Harvest Begins
On a Monday morning at a sugarcane farm in Port Allen, LSU AgCenter entomologist Blake Wilson and two student workers pushed through green and yellow cane stalks on a field’s border and into the interior rows. There, they found plants that were completely brown.
This farm, and many others throughout the state, has been infested with the pasture mealybug, an invasive species first identified by Louisiana crop consultants last year.
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Record-high Tier-2 Sugar Imports Expected to Boost U.S. Supply
Industry experts are projecting supply uncertainty for the beet and cane sugar crops for fiscal year 2026-27. The primary contributing factors to this uncertainty include drought-related reductions in sugarbeet planted acreage, relatively low sugar prices, high input costs and uncertainty about sugar demand, potentially stemming from the growing popularity of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs.
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Try to Spot the Two-Spot Cotton Leafhopper: LSU AgCenter Researchers Receive USDA Grant to Raise Awareness
With fall upon us, many a Louisianan’s mind turns to that first piping hot pot of gumbo simmering on the stove. But if the cotton jassid (Amrasca biguttula) has its way, one favorite ingredient — okra — may have to be left off the ingredient list.
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4-H Youth Spread Hope One Coffee Sleeve At A Time During Suicide Prevention Month
Sometimes a simple message can make a difference. That was the idea behind a 4-H suicide prevention project in Calcasieu Parish that started with markers, coffee sleeves and a group of 4-H’ers hoping to spread encouragement.
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Louisiana Crops Newsletter--September, 2026
There has been an abundance of ear rots reported in Louisiana throughout this growing season. As the harvest window is winding down, and with many growers already finished with harvest, I have heard of one reoccurring issue in particular: aflatoxin. There have been reports of heavy docking and even loads being rejected at the elevators. In addition to this, there are now many growers who are planning to store their grain who have been inquiring about storage guidelines for infected grain.
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