HORIZON AG REGIONAL REPORTS

Hot, Dry Weather Speeds Up Harvest Across the Delta

Missouri & Northeast Arkansas

Happy Harvest

We’ve officially reached the ‘hurry up and wait’ part of our season. Some growers are feeling like kids waking up on Christmas morning after sampling their first load of rice, while others are patiently waiting for fields to drain. Arkansas harvest progress will likely reach 50% or more completed by the end of this week. Missouri will have a small part of its southern region in the thick of harvest, with the northern portion of the state just starting to think about draining fields. So far, harvest moistures are staying solid. We had a rain event on 8/22 in Northeast Arkansas that impacted some of the earlier maturity rice that was in the middle of harvest. Unfortunately, those weather systems brought high winds into the area that lodged some rice.

Although there have been few reports of Horizon varieties harvested in the area, what we have heard is good. The varieties PVL06, CLL18 and CLL16 that were planted in the late-March window are yielding good results. The verdict is still out for milling at this point; we should have more information by the end of the week. Dr. Hardke says milling is better than it was last year, but it’s still too early to tell.

The forecast is hot and dry for the next ten days, so we should move through harvest fairly quickly.

For growers starting the draining process, consider staggering fields instead of pulling the trigger all at once. The drought we’re in, combined with the forecast, is going to speed up dry-down in these fields. If you are managing furrow-irrigated rice, plan on continuing irrigation once or twice more (depending on when you can harvest), even after pulling the boards at the bottom end of the field.

We’re praying for a successful harvest for each of you. I’m looking forward to hearing from you as we wrap up harvest and begin the planning process for next year.

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Mississippi & North Louisiana

Harvest is in full swing in Mississippi and North Louisiana. August was a hot month, and it looks like that trend is continuing into September. As harvest began, growers were hopping from field to field trying to find drier rice to send to the dryers before they got too busy. With how hot and dry it has been these past two weeks, they are trying to get their rice out of the field as quickly as possible. North Mississippi had some strong straight-line winds come through in the 3rd week of August, lodging some rice, but not much rain came with it. We’ve also had some isolated showers keeping growers out of the fields for a day or two.

Early yields look promising this year, with CLL19 cutting in the 175-190 bu/acre range and a few fields at 195+ bu/acre on multiple farms. CLL18 looks good too, with one report of 190+ bu/acre on row rice. Both CLM04 and CLJ01 are cutting as expected, with average yields reported thus far.

I am going to reiterate what my counterpart Hutch Hutchens said in his last regional report. We need to be cautious when it comes to drain timing of the rice crop this year. With these high temperatures, it will not take long for the rice to dry down. Let’s try to stagger draining as much as we can to help keep the plant alive while holding onto better milling until you can get in there to harvest the field. For row rice, once you pull the boards, it would be beneficial to flush through it one more time to try to keep the top third of the field from drying out too quickly.

As always, if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out. I hope everyone has a safe and bountiful harvest.

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