Stay with it
May 07, 2018
LITTLE ROCK, AR – Every farmer knows the tried but true saying: “The only thing predictable about the weather, is that it’s unpredictable.” And here in Arkansas, that statement is just as true for 2018 as it has been in years past.
During the months of March and April, Arkansas farmers had small windows of perfect planting weather between the many cold and wet periods Mother Nature threw at them. Many times, planting had to wait because it was too cold or too wet, then farmers would have a few days to plant before it turned wet and cold again.
Eric Vaught from North East Arkansas reports that the majority of rice in his area has been planted and many were able to finish planting last week. Notwithstanding the unpredictable weather, he said most of the stands look very promising and despite fears that they would have to flush the fields during one dry period to enable the rice to emerge, the rains came again.
“We expect the fields that were planted last week to germinate and emerge over the next week thanks to the light rain that moved across our area last Thursday and Friday,” said Vaught. “If the weather cooperates over the next month, very little replanting is expected which would be a relief to producers everywhere.”
Near Newport, Jennifer James reports that her operation is not finished planting. “According to the calendar, we should be done but, thanks to the wet weather, we’re playing catch-up. The drill seeding equipment gets in the fields as soon as conditions allow and right now, we’ve got tractors with their lights on, working after dark.”
Jay Coker, a rice farmer in South East Arkansas, said 75 percent of the crop is planted already which is in line with their historical average. However, the cool, wet weather has slowed crop progress. Much of the rice that was planted from late March to mid-April is struggling right now due to bird damage and seedling damage from being in the ground too long which has caused less than optimal stands.
“Rice that was planted in late April is off to a great start,” said Coker. “Even with this less than ideal weather, I expect crop yields will still be normal since rice is such a resilient and forgiving crop.”