The rice-farming Durand brothers of St. Martin Parish received the Conservation Achievement Award from Ducks Unlimited for their work to compensate rice farmers for maintaining waterfowl habitat. The presentation was made at the program of the LSU AgCenter Rice Research Station Field Day June 30. From left to right are Greg Durand, Jeff Durand, Jerry Holden, of Ducks Unlimited, and C.J. Durand. (Photo by Bruce Schultz. Click on photo for downloadable image.)

Clayton Hollier, LSU AgCenter plant pathologist, talks about his study of microclimates in rice crops during the LSU AgCenter Rice Research Station field day June 30. Hollier said the study is looking at whether the plants’ physical characteristics help determine a variety’s disease resistance. He is using weather monitoring stations to record data from inside the rice plant canopy. (Photo by Bruce Schultz. Click on photo for downloadable image.)

News Release Distributed 07/01/11

CROWLEY, La. – LSU AgCenter researchers are using weather stations to study microclimates in rice fields to determine if the structure of rice plants can influence disease susceptibility or resistance in different varieties.

That was one of several projects presented June 30 at the LSU AgCenter Rice Research Station field day.

The weather stations are recording field data, including wind speed, humidity and temperature within the plant canopy, said LSU AgCenter plant pathologist Clayton Hollier.

“What we are trying to do is find out if there are differences in the plant architecture based on those components,” Hollier said. Plants will be analyzed to determine the earliest signs of diseases such as bacterial panicle blight, and those signs will be correlated with microclimate data.

Developing rice varieties with disease resistance is the best defense, said LSU AgCenter plant pathologist Don Groth. Varieties are examined annually to make sure they have retained the resistant traits.

Eliminating susceptibility in varieties is more important than developing high resistance to diseases, Groth said.

Resistance has been improving through the years, he said. The Labelle rice variety typically lost half of its yield potential to sheath blight, while the variety Lemont lost a third. Now, many new varieties lose less than 15 percent of yields because of this disease, and most medium grains only have a 4-6 percent loss.

Genetic-marker technology is being used to develop a Jazzman variety with the Clearfield trait, said LSU AgCenter rice breeder Xueyan Sha. “We’re pretty confident we’ll have a Clearfield version of Jazzman in the near future.”

He said more than 10,000 acres of Jazzman are being grown in Louisiana this year.

Steve Linscombe, LSU AgCenter rice breeder and director of the Rice Research Station, discussed several lines of rice under development as potential varieties.

Two long-grain Clearfield varieties developed at the station, CL151 and CL111, are being reviewed by the Kellogg Co., he said.

The seed treatment Dermacor has proven to be more effective against the rice water weevil, but it can be compromised by low seeding rates, said LSU AgCenter entomologist Mike Stout.

Work continues on a seed treatment for water-seeded rice, Stout said, and a study is reviewing the threshold for spraying for stink bugs.

Farmers have found an unusual number of different insect problems, particularly in Calcasieu and Jefferson Davis parishes, said LSU AgCenter entomologist Natalie Hummel. Drought could be a factor in the insect problems, which included chinch bugs, armyworms, billbugs, sugarcane beetles and thrips.

Flushing fields quickly and then spraying with a pyrethroid seemed to be the best remedy, Hummel said.

Resistant weeds are a big problem in Mississippi, according to Mississippi State University weed scientist Jason Bond. He said farmers are learning that barnyardgrass has to be treated early.

LSU AgCenter weed scientist Eric Webster said the worst herbicide drift case he investigated this year involved a ground rig used to spray Newpath in a 20-mile-per-hour wind. He also said farmers need to do a thorough job of cleaning tanks before mixing different batches of chemicals.

Rice farmers should flood their fields immediately after applying fertilizer because the material will decompose on dry ground, said LSU AgCenter agronomist Dustin Harrell. But the second fertilizer can be applied on a flooded field because rice plants will have matured enough to absorb nitrogen quickly and out-compete weeds.

Maturing rice plants can take up as much as 65 percent of fertilizer in three days or less, he said.

During the program after the field tour, Clarence Berken, vice-chairman of the Louisiana Rice Research Board, said the Louisiana agriculture industry should voice its concerns about cuts to research stations.

“We need to let our voices be heard that the cuts will hurt the rice industry,” Berken said, calling agriculture “the low-hanging budgetary fruit.”

Berken also said a pending free trade agreement with Colombia would mean that 89,000 tons of U.S. rice would be imported into that country duty free, and all rice research facilities in the United States could obtain additional funds under the tariff-rate quota.

The tariff-rate quota funds for the LSU AgCenter Rice Research Station could amount to $1 million annually, Berken said.

The money would be a big boost to research that directly benefits farmers, he said. “This is the best rice research station, and we have the results to back that up.”

LSU AgCenter vice chancellor for research John Russin agreed with Berken’s compliment. “This team here is among the very best anywhere.”

Negotiations on the 2012 farm bill include a safety net, said Kyle McCann with the Louisiana Farm Bureau. But direct payments and conservation programs are likely to be cut to reduce the federal deficit.

Also at the program, Jerry Holden of Ducks Unlimited honored brothers Greg, C.J. and Jeff Durand of St. Martin Parish with the Conservation Achievement Award for their part in getting a program to reward rice farmers for their efforts at enhancing waterfowl habitat.

“Rice is good for ducks,” Holden said.

Mike Strain, Louisiana agriculture secretary, said more than 1,000 rice farmers in the state grow almost 500,000 acres of rice worth $500 million a year, adding that the state’s natural resources will be the driving force of Louisiana.

“The whole world needs what we have,” Strain said.

Water quality standards are being imposed on other states, LSU AgCenter vice chancellor for extension Paul Coreil said. The Louisiana Master Farmer program could help the state avoid tighter restrictions, and the Master Farmer training will be expedited to increase the number of farmers who are certified, he added.

Bruce Schultz