Greetings from Louisiana rice country! This year, the blog will concentrate research conducted at the LSU AgCenter Rice Research Station, in addition to showing the progress of a 6-acre field of rice planted March 19 to produce foundation seed. We encourage your comments and thoughts to help improve this online tool. If you would like a photograph of a particular piece of equipment or a better explanation of a process, let us know.

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Fertilizer applied, now time for permanent flood





Nitrogen fertilizer was applied to the field Tuesday afternoon by airplane at the rate of 92 pounds per acre. Now Larry White, director of the foundation seed program at the  LSU AgCenter Rice Research Station, will soon be turning on the valve to release water for the permanent flood.

What little moisture the field has received has been from pumping. The last rainfall at the station was on May 3 with .03 of an inch. The entire month of April brought only a half-inch of rain, and so far the rainfall total for 2010 is only 9.7 inches compared to 23.77 inches last year. Below you can see the dried earth and the young rice plants.